Baghdad, Aug. 27 – Iranians top the list of those arrested in one of the most commuted towns in the eastern Iraqi governorate of al-Wassit, the Iraqi television channel al-Iraqia reported. The report, which aired on Friday, said that 1,580 Iranians had been arrested during recent patrols by security forces in al-Badra.The manoeuvres by security forces in al-Wassit, which shares a border with neighbouring Iran, were part of a campaign to prop up border security, the report said. They were all arrested for illegal entry into Iraq from the Iranian border. Other foreign nationals that had been arrested in the province included nine people from Nigeria, four from India, 409 from Afghanistan, and two from Pakistan.
Iraqi, American and British officials in Iraq have accused Tehran of backing insurgent groups and dispatching undercover military or intelligence agents to Iraq, often in the guise of pilgrims. Al-Wassit has been a favourite crossing point for Iranians entering Iraq illegally.