Iraq PM: Security plan to target militants

Iraq's prime minister told parliament Thursday that the coming security sweep in the capital would not be the last battle against militants, who he said would not be safe anywhere in the country.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki did not reveal the details of the plan or say when it would begin, although he promised to ensure the human rights of innocent Iraqis.

"Operation Imposing Law," as he named the security operation that is bringing 21,500 more American troops to Iraq, would target Sunni and Shiite lawbreakers equally.

"We are full of hope. We have no other choice but to use force and any place where we receive fire will not be safe even if it is a school, a mosque, a political party office or home," he said. "There will be no safe place in Iraq for terrorists."

Past attempts by American forces and Iraqis have failed to cleanse the capital of Sunni insurgents and Shiite militiamen. Previously, al-Maliki intervened to prevent the crackdowns from going after members of the Shiite Mahdi Army that is run by one of his prime political backers, anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

The militia force is believed responsible for much of the sectarian killing in Baghdad and central Iraq in recent months. Its forces and death squads have deeply infiltrated Iraqi security forces.

The crackdown "aims to disarm all groups and only leave weapons in the hands of the government," al-Maliki said, repeating a phrase he has consistently repeated for months. "This plan will not be the last. The battle between us and terrorists is open and continuous."

Meanwhile, the mayor of Baghdad's Sadr City said he reached agreement with political and religious groups to keep weapons off the streets of the heavily populated Shiite militia stronghold and has presented the deal to U.S. and Iraqi government officials in an apparent attempt to avoid a crackdown on the area.

Rahim al-Darraji said Iraqi troops will be in charge of security in the sprawling district in eastern Baghdad. His comments come amid fears that Sadr City, the main headquarters of the Mahdi Army militia, could be a major target in the planned crackdown.

The prime minister said five committees will be set up to work in conjunction with the military as it and U.S. troops conduct the security plan to deal with political, media, public services, economic and community outreach aspects.

He said Baghdad would be divided into nine sectors and Iraqi troops would be in the lead, backed by American forces.

The last of five additional U.S. brigades to help with the security sweep are scheduled to arrive in the Iraqi capital in May. The first, a brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division, arrived last week.

In violence Thursday, a bomb attached to a motorcycle exploded in one of Baghdad's busiest market areas, killing at least four people and wounding 18, police said.

The blast hit the Shorja market district at about 11 a.m., police said, giving the casualty toll. The market is a major point for wholesalers to sell food, clothing and house products in the warehouses, stalls and shops lining the streets.

A bomb also struck a market in the religiously mixed area of Baiyaa in western Baghdad at 10:45 a.m., killing at least one civilian and wounding seven, police said.

Both areas have been the targets of bombings previously as insurgents seek busy commercial targets to maximize the casualties.

In northern Iraq, gunmen killed Hussein Abdul Aziz Ahmed, a member of the local council in Gayyara, about 20 miles south of Mosul, as he was driving to work, police said.