US, Iraqi troops detain 81 suspected militants
 November 22, 2007
Iraqi and US troops detained 81 suspected extremists during a three-day crackdown in Diwaniyya, where rival Shiite militia are ranged against each other, a statement said Wednesday. The US military statement quoted Major General Othman Ali Farhud, commander of the Iraqi Army’s 8th Division, as saying that several weapons caches were seized during the November 17-19 operation on the central city codenamed “Operation Lion’s Leap.”
“The northeast quarters of Diwaniyya, where the operation was conducted, were under control of criminal and militant groups,” Farhud was quoted as saying, adding that the troops had suffered no casualties.
Iraqi security officials said 3,000 Iraqi soldiers and policemen, supported by tanks and hundreds of US and Polish troops, launched the assault Saturday to flush out Shiite militants from the city.
They said on Monday that in the first two days of the operation 49 militants loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr were arrested.
Witnesses said the city of more than 1 million people had been placed under curfew and US aircraft had dropped leaflets urging locals to cooperate in locating militant hideouts.
The US military said Wednesday Iran must prove over time it that it was committed to stemming the flow of weapons into Iraq, adding a note of caution
after a warming in Washing-ton’s tone toward Tehran.
US officials have softened their rhetoric toward Iran this month since US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he understood Iran had given Iraq behind-the-scenes assurances that the flow of weapons would stop.
“We are thankful for the commitment that Iran has made to reduce the flow of weapons and explosives coming into Iraq,” Lieutenant General James Dubik, head of US military efforts to rebuild Iraq’s security forces, said Wednesday. He added it had made some contribution to cutting violence in Iraq. Iraq Updates