(VOI)- Six wanted men were arrested and amounts of weapons and ammunitions were confiscated during a security raid in separate areas in Basra, a police source said on Friday. "Interior ministry's forces waged a crackdown operation in separate areas in the southern province, where six wanted men were arrested," the source, who asked to be unnamed, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq (VOI). "They also seized 47 mortar shells, 4 missiles and 186 hand grenades," he added. The Iraqi government launched a major crackdown dubbed as Saulat al-Foursan (Knights' Assault) on gunmen in Basra, resulting in clashes erupting between government security forces and Mahdi Army militiamen loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in Baghdad and major southern cities. Basra is 590 km south of Baghdad.