Armed groups in Basra surrender their weapons

By NNN-KUNA

Baghdad : Armed groups in the southern city of Basra began to surrender their weapons to security authorities just hours after Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki declared a 72-hour ultimatum for them to drop their arms or face “the toughest penalties” Wednesday.

---

Support TwoCircles

---

A statement by the premier’s office said some armed groups had started to hand in their weapons, but did not name the groups or the volume of arms that were confiscated.

It also said that tribal leaders and heads of political factions had called the premier to express their support for his efforts to fight outlaws and gangs that were trying to destabilize Basra.