Gov't Statement: 171 arrested in Baghdad in last 48 hours

A U.S. soldier of the Bravo 2-17 field artillery 2nd Platoon guards a detained man during a night raid in Baghdad yesterday.

Baghdad, March 17, (VOI) – 171 suspected militants were arrested by Iraqi security forces in several areas in Baghdad, during the past 48 hours, under the Baghdad law-imposing plan, the Baghdad operations command said on Saturday.

"Security forces arrested 171 suspected militants in various parts of the capital over the past 48 hours," the Baghdad operations command said in a statement received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

The statement added further, "two captives were freed while five explosive devices were defused in different parts of Baghdad."

Six security personnel were killed and 18 others were wounded in a combat mission, the statement also noted.

Iraqi and U.S. troops have been involved in a large-scale operation, since mid-February, in a bid to quell bombings and sectarian violence in the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

From VOI

Related Link:
U.S. expanding prisons in Iraq to accommodate thousands more

Related Link:
Petraeus: 700 Mahdi Army members 'detained' in Sadr City sweeps

Related Link:
Perspective: New Martial Law Powers Threaten Basic Rights

Related Link:
U.S. human rights report lists Iraq among the worst

Related Link:
Report: Maliki 'cabinet reshuffle' to include arrests of up to 100

Related Link:
Maliki: 400 'militants' killed in crackdown

Related Link:
VP Hashemi: Human rights 'have not been respected' in security plan, decries focus on Sunnis

Related Link:
Maliki decree gives Baghdad commander Qanbar sweeping 'emergency powers' over police, army, populace

Related Link:
Petraeus says U.S. may use notorious Iraqi FPS security forces in Baghdad push