Bombing Suspects Held in South
Police have arrested members of a cell blamed for bombings that killed more than 100 people in southern Iraq and is suspected of links to Al Qaeda, a senior officer said Wednesday.
The police chief in the southern city of Najaf said the suspects were believed to have been involved in an attack using mortar shells and explosives that killed scores of Shiite Muslim pilgrims in Karbala in March.
They are also suspected of being linked to a car bombing in Najaf in August that killed more than 100 people, including top Shiite Muslim leader Ayatollah Mohammed Bakr Hakim.
Police Chief Ghaleb Jezairi spoke at a graduation ceremony for police recruits in Najaf.
Jezairi gave no other details and did not say how many people had been arrested.
Interior Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
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In stories after September 1, the Najaf police chief’s name is spelled Ghalib Jazaari.
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