US troops have raided an office of Iraq's main Shia group, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), in Baghdad and detained three members, SCIRI said today.
It said that US forces, including commandos, thoroughly searched the office yesterday and confiscated documents and computers, detained three staff members and humiliated others. It was the second time that US forces raided a SCIRI office in Baghdad this month.
The Iran-backed SCIRI, which enjoys widespread support among Iraq's majority Shias, has increasingly been on a collision course with US forces in Iraq as it seeks to get its share of power following the ouster of president Saddam Hussein.
Earlier this month, US forces raided a Baghdad office of the group and a Reuters witnesses said they saw soldiers leave with documents and a safe.
The group has not responded to a US call for Iraqis to surrender their weapons, except those used for self-defence.
SCIRI's fighters and military leaders, who were mostly based in Iran, have been returning to Iraq after US-led forces toppled Saddam on April 9th.