600 Members of Mahdi Army Captured

The US also says that 33 Sunni cell leaders were captured in Baghdad.

From Agence France Presse:

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi and US forces have captured more than 600 fighters loyal to firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, the US military said, while violence across the country claimed another 31 lives...

There are currently over 600 illegal Jaish al-Mahdi (JAM) militia in detention awaiting prosecution from the government of Iraq," a statement said.

It said Iraqi and US forces had also detained 16 high-level militiamen and killed one commander in a series of operations against the Mahdi Army, known for its fierce anti-US stance...

Combined Iraqi and US forces have carried out 52 operations in the past 45 days focused on the Mahdi Army as well as 42 operations that targetted Sunni extremists, it said.

The operations against Sunni extremists led to the capture of 33 cell leaders in Baghdad, the statement said, charging that the detainees were mainly involved in facilitating the entry of foreign fighters into Iraq.

I suppose this news comes from a French news agency because the American ones are busy with the Oscars, not because they have a politically motivated embargo on any positive news from Iraq for political reasons or anything.