U.S. troops on Monday detained a prominent member of an influential Sunni Muslim group believed to have links to insurgents, officials of the group said. Dr. Muthanna Harith al-Dhari, information director for The Association of Muslim Scholars, was detained along with two of his guards, said Hassan Jumaa, an official in the group's information office.
| Sunni Muslim scholar, huh? Why does the word "saudi" come to mind? |
| I think we might have something big going on. This bo is the guy who was doing the "negotiating" with the Fallujah hard boyz. And we've got Tater surrounded. Wonder who else is feeling heat? |
Al-Dhari was returning home when he was detained by U.S. troops just after midnight. "Eight Humvees were waiting for him," Jumaa said, adding that troops searched al-Dhari's vehicle and another car escorting him for over two hours before taking him and away.
| "Welcome home, assume the position." |
It was not clear why al-Dhari was detained and the U.S. military had no immediate comment. A statement from radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's office condemned al-Dhari's arrest and threatened "decisive measures" if he was not released.
| Which could be difficult if Tater's toasted, too... |
"What measures?"
"Decisive ones!" |
In an interview with the Arab satellite network Al-Jazeera, one of the men accompanying al-Dhari when he was arrested, said U.S. forces dealt with them "aggressively." Ammar Abdul Kareem said U.S. troops forced them to get out of the car, searched them, then said they detected traces of explosive materials on the hands of al-Dhari and two other companions.
| Well, he is a muslim scholar. |
The association was founded last year to promote the interests of Iraq's Sunni minority. Al-Dhari is the son of the group's secretary-general, Sheik Harith al-Dhari.
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