By SPA
Baghdad : Fifty-six people were killed and 70 were wounded Friday when fighting broke out in Basra and Nasiriya between security forces and members of a violent cult, authorities said.
Thirteen of the dead and 22 of the wounded were police officers, according to the Ministry of Information.
CNN has confirmed that Abu Mustapha Ansari, the Basra leader of the followers of Ahmed al-Hasani al-Yamani, a messianic cult, was among those killed.
Iraqi state TV said a curfew has been imposed in both Basra and Nasiriya and security forces are in control of the situation.
Police in Basra said many people have been detained and that police were conducting raids.
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