U.S.-Led Forces Detain Suspected Militants

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - U.S.-led forces detained more than a dozen suspected militants in a counterinsurgency sweep through western Anbar province as part of a sustained effort to disrupt the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq, the military said Thursday.

Separately, a Sunni Arab politician who brokered secret talks between American officials and insurgents said he has formed a group to give political voice to Iraqi fighters, and he demanded a timetable for a U.S. troop withdrawal.

Former Cabinet member Ayham al-Samarie announced the creation of the National Council for Unity and Construction of Iraq on Wednesday to give representation to Iraqi fighters. Al-Samarie, a dual Iraq-U.S. citizen, is believed to have strong tribal links in the so-called Sunni Triangle in central Iraq, where the Sunni branch of the insurgency is concentrated.

He was the target of a death threat issued Thursday on an Islamic Web site, claiming he was spreading lies...

...The new political front is representing "resistance" fighters who have not targeted civilians, al-Samarie said. Nearly all car bomb and suicide attacks targeting Iraqis are believed to be the work of Islamic extremist groups
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