Pat Dollard | Young Americans

Baghdad, May 26, (VOI) - Interior Ministry forces on Monday arrested a key al-Qaeda network commander in western Mosul, a security spokesman said.

“A force from the Interior Ministry captured an al-Qaeda commander and two senior operatives in Islah al-Zirai Zirawi, west Mosul,” Brig. Gen Abdel Karim Khalaf, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).

The spokesman identified the al-Qaeda commander as Abdullah Scania, noting “he was arrested based on an intelligence tip-off.”
“The al-Qaeda commander was on the run and arrested after clashes that lasted for more than half an hour,” he added

He highlighted “security forces seized forged documents along with the detainees.”

The Iraqi government has launched a crackdown dubbed Um al-Rabeen (Mother of Two Springs) to crack down on al-Qaeda fighters and gunmen.

Mosul, the capital city of Ninewa province, lies 405 km north of Baghdad