Unidentified gunmen assassinated a Sunni Imam of a mosque in eastern Baghdad late Thursday, said police Friday.

"Three unknown gunmen stepped out of their car and shot down Shiekh Abdul Rahim al-Samarraie, the Imam of the Sunni mosque called Asmaa Thaat al-Nitaqain, in Baghdad's eastern neighborhood," a police source told Xinhua.

The attack took place at about 6:30 p.m. (1530 GMT) after the sunset prayer while al-Samarraie was walking with his wife outside the mosque, added the source.

Many Sunni clerics in eastern Baghdad have received death threats from unknown parties recently, relatives of the assassinated Imam said.

Insurgents have targeted a number of Muslim clerics, both Shiites and Sunnis, since the US-led invasion in March 2003, in an attempt to trigger national strife between Iraq's two largest sects.

Source: Xinhua