Posted on 05/30/2005 5:22:52 AM PDT by jimbo123
BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. troops detained the head of Iraq's largest Sunni Muslim political party on Monday, according to party officials, police and the man's wife. South of the capital, two suicide bombers attacked a crowd of policemen in Hillah, killing 20 and wounding nearly 100.
Iraq's president condemned the arrest of Mohsen Abdul-Hamid, head of the Iraqi Islamic Party, and demanded his immediate release.
Abdul-Hamid was taken from his home in the western Baghdad suburb of Khadra at about 6 a.m., along with his three sons and four guards, said party-secretary-general Ayad al-Samarei.
Al-Samarei accused American soldiers of raiding Abdul-Hamid's home and confiscating various items, including a computer. U.S. military officials could not immediately confirm the detentions. Iraqi officials were also reluctant to talk about the issue.
A top police official, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, claimed U.S. forces arrested Abdul-Hamid as did his wife, Awatif Ibrahim.
"They (U.S troops) raided our house and my son's house, using bullets and stun bombs," Ibrahim told Associated Press Television News. "And they arrested him (her son) and they also detained my husband, Mohsen Abdul-Hamid, head of the Iraqi Islamic Party."
The party also released a statement alleging "occupation forces arrested Abdul-Hamid" and that an Arabic translator had assisted in the detention.
The Iraqi Islamic Party issued a statement demanding Abdul-Hamid's immediate release, saying he "represents a large sector of the Iraqi people."
"This irresponsible behavior will only complicate the situation," the party statement said.
Abdul-Hamid, aged in his late 60s, is regarded as a moderate Islamic leader. He was a member of the now dissolved U.S.-appointed Iraqi Governing Council and has been involved with the party since the 1970s and headed it since 2003.
(Excerpt) Read more at tristate-media.com ...
His relatives said U.S. troops broke down the door of the family home and put a bag over Abdul-Hamid's head before taking him away. The U.S. military had no information on the arrests.
just posted 10 mins ago with slightly different headline.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1413097/posts
get a rope .
And yet, nobody died! More ACLU inspired B.S. from the terrorists!
See posts #1 #4.
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