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Iraq: Bomber Of Samarra Mosque Reportedly Captured

PRAGUE, June 28, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- On February 22, a bomb destroyed a Shi'ite shrine in Samarra, north of Baghdad, setting off a rash of violence between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims that has threatened to plunge Iraq into civil conflict. Today, Iraq announced that it has arrested a leading suspect in the Samarra attack.

National Security Adviser Muwaffaq al-Rubay'i said today that Iraqi security forces have captured Yusri Fakhir Muhammad Ali.

Al-Rubay'i said Ali, also known as Abu Qudama, is a member of Al-Qaeda in Iraq. The official said Ali, a Tunisian, was arrested in Al-Dulu'iyah, north of Baghdad, after a recent firefight between Iraqi forces and a group of insurgents.

According to al-Rubay'i, Ali was seriously wounded in the gunfight and 15 other insurgents were killed. He didn't give the exact date of the incident.

Although Ali was captured, al-Rubay'i said, the Al-Qaeda lieutenant who conceived the attack on the Golden Mosque remains at large. He was identified as Haitham Sabah Shakir Muhammad al-Badri, an Iraqi.

Attack Meant To Foment Sectarian Violence

Al-Rubay'i said the reason for the February attack was to help promote violence between Shi'a and Sunnis. "The shrines of the Al-Askari imams were chosen because of their religious importance and their geographical location, and the choice was meant to cause sectarian division among the people," he said.

The bombs collapsed the golden dome of the 1,200-year-old mosque and was widely viewed as an provocation to Iraq's majority Shi'a. It was followed by sectarian killings of hundreds of Iraqi civilians and attacks on dozens mosques representing both Muslim sects in Iraq.

An estimated 20,000 families also have been displaced because of the violence.

Al-Rubay'i said the search for al-Badri, the mastermind of the mosque attack, has intensified. He said that although Ali was badly wounded, he is helping investigators.

"Abu Qudama al-Tunisi has confessed to his involvement in other activities and gave important information on the activities of Haitham al-Badri and Al-Qaeda in Iraq," al-Rubay'i said.

According to al-Rubay'i, al-Badri's Al-Qaeda unit included two other Iraqis besides al-Badri, four Saudis, and Abu Qudama.

Meanwhile, Iraqi legislators say seven insurgent groups have offered a conditional truce. They say they include former members of the government under deposed President Saddam Hussein. But one of those groups, which calls itself Muhammad's Army, denied that any such offer has been made.

The Iraqi legislators said the groups involved in reconciliation negotiations didn't include Al-Qaeda or related forces.

Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org