American forces lose one soldier, arrests Ali Hassan Al-Majeed

News reports said that the American forces detained Ali Hassan Al-Majeed., cousin of the toppled Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Al-Majeed occupied number 5 in the American list of the most wanted Iraqi figures.

The news reports indicated that no other details were given on the implications of Al-Majeed's arrest in which he is accused of leading attacks by chemical weapons against the Kurds during the 1980s.

Al-Majeed is also known for leading the operation of oppressing the Shiite in the south by the beginning of the 1990s.

The reports indicated that Al-Majeed's was arrested several days ago.

Meantime, a US military spokesman announced that one American soldier was killed and two others wounded in an explosion in Baghdad when an explosive went off.

In al-Qaem city which is situated near the borders with Syria, the American forces were exposed to two separate explosives and this resulted in the destruction of three armored vehicles and wounding several soldiers. The American forces cordoned the region and launched a vast inspection operation in search for the attackers and detained 40 Iraqis.

Witnesses said the American forces arrested yesterday three Iraqis in al-Falouja, 60 Km to the west of Baghdad and broke a market for light weapons traders in the downtown of the city.