KEY POINTS:
KUT, Iraq - US troops detained today the eldest son of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, one of Iraq's most powerful Shi'ite leaders, sparking protests from Shi'ite politicians and prompting an apology from the US ambassador.
Ammar Hakim's convoy was stopped at a border checkpoint in eastern Wasit province as he returned from Iran, Iraqi security officials and a senior aide to Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim said. He was released this morning after being held for most of the day.
US ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad sought to contain any political fallout from the incident, telling reporters in Baghdad that while he did not know the circumstances of the arrest "we do not mean any disrespect" to the Hakim family.
"I am sorry about the arrest. We will find out what happened and we will let Mr Hakim and the Iraqi government know," he said. The US military had no comment on the arrest.
Washington has courted Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim in its efforts to stabilise Iraq and create a moderate Shi'ite bulwark against the growing influence of radical anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. The elder Hakim held talks with US President George W Bush in Washington in December.
A colonel in the Iraqi border guards based in Kut said US soldiers arrested the young cleric at gunpoint and handcuffed him before taking him away. A colonel in the 8th Division of the Iraqi Army confirmed his detention.
It was not immediately clear why Hakim had been held, but Shi'ite officials called it a "cowboy" action and said it could spark popular protests. The provincial council of the southern Shi'ite province of Najaf called for demonstrations on Saturday.
The incident could also strain the previously good relations between Washington and Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim's Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), the dominant political party in the Shi'ite-led government.
"There was clear provocation from the Americans. Ammar is a well-known figure. He is not a government figure but a religious figure," said Hameed Mualla, a senior SCIRI lawmaker.
"The way he has been treated is unacceptable and it will definitely provoke many people."
The Iraqi security officials said US forces had taken Ammar al-Hakim to Forward Operating Base Delta, a US camp near Kut, capital of Wasit province, after detaining him at about 4pm (2.00am NZT).
The governor of Wasit province, Latif Hamid Tarfa, and a SCIRI official later said he had been released. The senior aide to Hakim said the Americans had apologised for the incident.
"He was arrested with three of his bodyguards, who were also assaulted. Their weapons were confiscated even though they had permits for them," the aide told Reuters.
Education Minister Khodair al-Khozaei, a Shi'ite, condemned Hakim's arrest.
"There will definitely be popular reactions," he told Dubai-based Al Arabiya television.
"More than anybody else, it is the Americans who are violating the security plan through their cowboy methods," he said, referring to a major security crackdown launched this month in Baghdad.
Ammar Hakim, in his mid-30s and normally dressed in black turban and clerical robes, is an influential member of the ruling Shi'ite Alliance in his own right and is secretary general of a humanitarian charity set up by SCIRI.
The Washington Post reported in August 2005 that he was in Washington to meet officials at the State Department, Pentagon and National Security Council.
US forces have in recent months arrested a number of Iranians in Iraq, including several who were seized at Abdul Aziz Hakim's compound in Baghdad. They were later released.
SCIRI was founded in Iran in 1982 and its continued links to Shi'ite Islamist Iran is a source of concern for Washington, which accuses Iran of fuelling violence in Iraq by supplying Shi'ite militias with weapons, funding and training.
The Badr Organisation fought with Iran in the 1980-88 war against Saddam.
- REUTERS
