Sadr Associate Arrested in Iraq

Iraqi forces assisted by U.S. troops have arrested a high-ranking associate of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

An Iraqi military spokesman said Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji, who operates Sadr’s offices in Sadr City, was arrested in an overnight raid on a Baghdad mosque near Sadr City, CNN reported Friday.

The Mehdi Army militia operated by Sadr is thought to be a driving force behind sectarian violence between the Shiites and Sunnis in Iraq.

A statement released by the U.S. military did not specifically confirm the arrest of Darraji, but it said a high-level, illegal armed group leader accused of kidnapping, torturing and killing Iraqi civilians while serving as head of an illegal armed group punishment committee had been captured.

The statement said the armed group leader is also believed to have ties to death squad commanders and armed groups in Baghdad that carry out sectarian revenge killings.

Abdul Razak al-Nadawi, a spokesman for Sadr, said the radical cleric condemns the operation and called for supporters to protest the arrest Friday, The Washington Post reported.