By DPA
Baghdad : The US military in Iraq Saturday announced the arrest of four members of a Shia militia with ties to Iran who were allegedly involved in the bombing of a Baghdad market the previous day, pan-Arab broadcaster al-Jazeera reported.
The four are members of a pro-Iranian group that operates in Baghdad and was responsible for the Friday bombing, said al-Jazeera quoting a senior US army official.
It was not clear whether they are linked to the Mahdi Army, loyal to Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
Al-Sadr had stopped the activities of his paramilitary group ahead of restructuring its ranks. However, some militants refused to obey and have been carrying out attacks against multinational forces.
The US military had blamed “criminals” for the attack on a market in central Baghdad and said that US troops at the scene had found an explosive device bearing Iranian markings and apparently disguised as a box of goods for sale.
Eight citizens were killed in the attack and 28 Iraqis injured, including three policemen.