UK Troops Arrest Basra's Serious Crimes Unit

According to the BBC:

Hundreds of British troops backed by tanks have seized seven Iraqi police officers suspected of corruption and leading a death squad in Basra. The dawn operation formed the first stage of moves to disrupt and disband the southern city's Serious Crime Unit.

...British forces in Basra say some commanders were using the unit as a cover for death squads and criminal activities which they controlled.

A military spokesman told the BBC that rather than solving serious crimes, the unit was carrying them out.

"The Iraqi police force has been infiltrated by rogue elements of militias, by criminal gangs, by people who want to jostle for political gain and criminal gain," Maj Charles Burbridge said.

"And the Serious Crimes Unit is the centre of all of that."

They suspect the unit may have been complicit in the killing of 17 police academy employees six weeks ago.

Troops seized evidence including computer disks and hard drives, which will be used in the investigation and to support any future prosecutions.

A British army spokesman said the operation was a significant step towards cleansing the Iraqi police service - and should be a warning to corrupt and criminal officers that they would be brought to justice.

Yeah, as long as the arrests are carried out by a battalion of troops backed by tanks.

The very fact that such a huge operation had to be mounted to arrest seven criminal policemen, in what used to be one of the least troublesome to occupation forces of all Iraq's cities, speaks volumes for the success of the Iraqi misadventure.