112 Iraqis arrested including former air defense forces, confrontations between Shiite and occupation
The American occupation army announced yesterday the detention of 112 persons including the former leader of the Iraqi defense forces during a raid near the Syrian borders, while thousands of Shiite demonstrated in Baghdad for the second running day calling for releasing the Imam of a mosque, detained by the Americans.
Meantime, the New York Times said yesterday that the US military leaders are concerned because a large amount of over-the-shoulder anti-plane missiles that used to be in the arsenal of Iraq cannot be found.
US military leaders told the paper in Baghdad that the failure to find these missiles whose number might toll hundreds is the main reason that keeps Baghdad airport closed before business air flights. The American army does no know the number of the missing anti-plan weapons because they do not know their original number.
Meantime, a spokeswoman for the US occupation army said that the American forces positions in Balad, near Tikrit was yesterday exposed to an attack that resulted in wounding one soldier. She said that the American forces detained nine persons including five wanted and found a shelter for weapons in al-Taji to the north of Baghdad.
In a statement, the occupation army announced that its forces arrested 112 Iraqis including a high ranking army officer presumed to in connection with Saddam Hussein and persons suspected to have financed attacks against the Americans. This was during a campaign of arrest last Sunday in al-Qaem city near the border with Syria.
The statement explained that the senior officer is Abdul Hameed al-Mhallawi, commander of the air defense forces in the former Iraqi army, adding that the breaking in operations concentrated on 29 houses in the city.
Witnesses said that an American military convoy heading from al-Falouja city to al-Habaneyah base was exposed yesterday to an attack by four explosives that resulted in wounding one woman but no casualties were reported in the lines of the Americans.
Meanwhile, more than 2000 Shiite demonstrators yesterday stood in front of the headquarters of the occupation leadership in Baghdad and called for the release of a clergy arrested by the US forces on Monday. The demonstrators threw stones and shoes at the American soldiers.
The Imam of al-Bayaa quarters Mu'ayad al-Khazradji was arrested while he was negotiating with the occupation forces on top of a delegation of other 12 persons at the municipality headquarters of the area. Thousands of his associates on Tuesday clashed with units of the occupation forces in front of the said mosque, but the confrontations ended peacefully after the withdrawal of the American forces from the area.
A high ranking US army officer said that al-Khazradji was arrested "under the charge of carrying out criminal acts and activities against the coalition," but leaders of the demonstration stressed that the occupation forces planted weapons in the mosque to justify his detention.