- US occupation forces in Iraq have arrested Dr Muthana
Harith al-Dhari the editor of al-Basaer newspaper (Insight) and media officer
for the influential Association of Muslim Scholars.
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- "US forces arrested Muthana Harith al-Dhari this
morning as he turned up at the Um al-Quraa mosque, the headquarters of
the committee," Ahmad Abd Al-Ghafur al-Sammarai of the AMS, Iraq's
leading Sunni authority, said.
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- "This is the work of the occupation forces. They're
here to intimidate and terrorise people not to rebuild our country,"
he added.
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- Al-Sammarai said he had no idea why al-Dhari had been
arrested and called for all detainees of the occupation forces in Iraq
to be released.
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- Witness speaks out
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- Aljazeera interviewed Amar Abd Al-Karim, who was accompanying
al-Dhari when he was arrested, and he says the US forces stopped Dr al-Dhari's
convoy and took him into custody.
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- "We were on our way to the headquarters of the AMS,
going out from the studio of the LBC (Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation),
where Dr al-Dhari had given an interview.
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- "A US patrol emerged suddenly and stopped our convoy.
They searched the cars, and then asked us to step aside
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- and called for reinforcements.
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- "A number of Humvees arrived with detecting devices.
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- They gave us body scans, and told us that Dr Muthana
and two of his companions were to be arrested because the device detected
remains of explosives on Dr al-Dhari's hands."
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- Abd Al-Karim said the group was enraged at the US's allegations
and stressed that Dr al-Dhari was a guest in a TV interview.
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- "The US soldiers at the scene told us either we
shut up, or we would be arrested with Dr al-Dhari," he said.
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- Appeal to journalists
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- Sabah Ahmad, the technical manager of the al-Basaer newspaper,
told Aljazeera.net the staff condemned the arrest of their editor which
they considered an illegal act.
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- "Journalists in Iraq condemn the arrest of Dr Muthana
and we will ask media unions inside and outside Iraq to interfere and call
on the US to free him.
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- "It appears that he was arrested for saying something
in a broadcast interview that the US occupation authorities did not like,"
Ahmad said.
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- http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/25B2BED2-6
20D-4C37-ADD1-BF36D5654C6A.htm
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