BAGHDAD: Dozens of Shi'ite militiamen surrendered to Iraqi forces yesterday hours before a deadline set by Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki for them to lay down their arms ahead of a new military crackdown.
Officials said the four-day deadline given to the fighters in the southern oil rich province of Maysan was successful although some militants had escaped ahead of the crackdown.
Amara's police chief said 60 militiamen had surrendered ahead of the offensive and that hundreds of landmines were also discovered.
The office of Moqtada Al Sadr's in the city had been abandoned.
The latest crackdown targets Maysan province and in particular Amara which US commanders say has become a major centre for arms smuggling into Iraq from Iran just over the border.
Maysan police spokesman said the crackdown, called Basha'ar Al Salam (Promise of Peace), was to kick off today.
Al Maliki has, however, ordered the security forces to refrain from random arrests of Sadr supporters in the new crackdown.
He stressed that only outlaws be arrested, hoping that the Sadr leaders will help in isolating such elements to get rid of them.
Meanwhile, US forces yesterday blamed a rogue Shi'ite militia group seeking to stir up sectarian violence for a devastating truck bombing that killed 63 people in Baghdad.
The US military said intelligence information showed that Tuesday's attack in a predominantly Shi'ite district, the deadliest in the Iraqi capital in more than three months, was carried out by a "special groups cell", referring to rogue elements of Sadr's Mahdi Army.
It said it believed the attack was intended to incite Shi'ite violence against Sunni Arabs and specifically to disrupt resettlement of Sunni Arabs in the Al Hurriya area.
Al Maliki, who blamed the attack on a suicide bomber, also said the intent was to promote sectarian strife.
On the other hand, Iraq said it was committed to meeting a deadline for a long-term security pact with the US, as Washington confirmed it dropped a demand concerning the divisive issue of immunity for private contractors.
The two countries are negotiating a new security deal to provide a legal basis for US troops to stay in Iraq after a UN mandate expires on December 31.
