9 wanted men, suspects arrested east of Nassiriya

THI-QAR / IraqiNews.com: Policemen arrested nine people, including five wanted men, on Wednesday in east of Nassiriya, a security source said. “Police forces of al-Sdinawiya region, east of Nassiriya, arrested nine persons, including five wanted men,” Colonel Sadeq al-Mishrefawi, the director of the media department of the Thi-Qar police, told IraqiNews.com. “The detainees were referred to investigation,” he explained. Thi-Qar, 380 km south of Baghdad, has an area of 12,900 square kilometers (4,980.7 sq mi). In 2003 the estimated population of the governorate was 1,454,200 people. Thi-Qar was the second Iraqi province where security responsibilities were transferred from the Multi-National Force (MNF) to the Iraqis. The province’s capital is the city of al-Nassiriya. It also includes the ancient Sumerian ruins of Ur, Eridu, Lagash and Ngirsu. Before 1976 the province was known as al-Muntafiq. SH (P) 1