Key member of armed group captured in Wassit

WASSIT / IraqiNews.com: Policemen in Wassit captured a key member of the so-called Islamic State of Iraq group during an operation in the district of al-Suwayra, northern Wassit, on Saturday, a senior security official said. “The State member was captured in the area of al-Dariya, al-Suwayra district, (135 km) north of Kut,” Maj. General Abdel-Hanin Hammoud told IraqiNews.com. “The arrest was made during a raid on a hideout the armed group member was using in the northern part of the province,” he added. He said the arrested man confessed during initial investigations that he has kidnapped and killed five civilians and forced a number of families in al-Madaen, al-Dariya, al-Khanas and al-Lodj to relocate to other areas. A Shiite province, Wassit, 180 km south of Baghdad , is in the east of the country. Its name comes from the Arabic word meaning “middle,” as it lies along the Tigris about midway between Baghdad and Basra . Its major cities include the capital, al-Kut, and al-Hayy. Prior to 1976 it was known as Kut Province . AmR (P) 1