BASRA / Aswat al-Iraq: Basra has become free from elements of al-Qaeda network after arresting all its members, chief of the Basra police said on Tuesday.

"Our forces managed through wide-scale operations for more than a year to dismantle all al-Qaeda cells in Basra," General Faisal al-Abbadi said at a press conference at the Basra police department.

"The forces arrested in the past few days 11 al-Qaeda elements, including Ahmad Jassem, the emir of the group, and an explosives expert, who carries the Pakistani nationality his name is Mahmoud Abdulkarim," he added.

"All detainees confessed implementing several bombing attacks in the provinces this year and last year," he said, highlighting that their arrests came after using intelligence information.

SH (TP)