|
Updated: 7:02 PM May 8, 2008
Iraqi Al Qaeda Leader Arrested
Iraq's defense ministry says Aby Ayyub al-Masir has been captured in the city of Mosul.
Posted: 7:02 PM May 8, 2008Reporter: Ralph Hipp |
**FILE** In this June 15 2006 file photo, a U.S. soldier at a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq stands by a photograph that purports to show Abu Ayyub al-Masri who is the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq. The Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman said Thursday, May 8, 2008 that the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq Abu Ayyub al-Masri has been arrested in the northern city of Mosul. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim, File)
|
Iraqi police commandos captured the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq in a raid in the northern city of Mosul, Iraqi officials said Thursday, in what could mark a significant blow to the Sunni insurgency in its last urban stronghold. Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Askari said the arrest of Abu Ayyub al-Masri — also known as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir — was reported by the Iraqi commander in Mosul, where insurgents have sought to establish a foothold after being widely uprooted from Baghdad and surrounding areas last year.
The U.S. military in Baghdad said it was "checking with Iraqi authorities to confirm the accuracy of this information." Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said the arrest occurred "at midnight and during the primary investigations he admitted that he is Abu Hamza Al-Muhajir."
Khalaf told the Iraqi state television that al-Masri was arrested during a police raid, but gave no other details.
"Now a broader investigation of him is being conducted," he said.
