US Military: Six Al-Qaida Suspects Detained in Iraq

The U.S. military in Iraq says coalition forces have detained six suspects and disrupted propaganda and finance operations of al-Qaida in Iraq insurgents. A military statement said the men were detained during operations Saturday in Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul.

Also today, Iraqi police said a suicide bombing killed at least one person and wounded at least five others at a police and Iraqi army checkpoint in western Baghdad.

In other violence today, police said a roadside bomb wounded five civilians near a hospital south of the capital.

Separately, the U.S. military said one American soldier was killed and 11 others wounded by two bombs that exploded next to their vehicles near the northern city of Kirkuk Friday.

Also on Friday, a top Iraqi Shi’ite leader called for controls on U.S.-backed local Sunni groups that are fighting al-Qaida-linked insurgents.

Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, who heads the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council, the largest Shi’ite party in the Baghdad government, praised the role of the Sunni patrol groups in contributing to a sharp decline in violence. But he said the groups, known as “Awakening Councils,” should operate in coordination with the government.

by VOA News

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