Iraqi PM pledges to enforce law after Amara crackdown

Baghdad: Iraq's prime minister pledged to maintain law and order in the southern city of Amara on Monday, days after a security crackdown that the movement of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said unfairly targeted them.

Iraqi forces have taken control of Amara and the surrounding province of Maysan, seizing heavy weapons and arresting wanted men in an operation aimed at stamping government authority on an area where Shi'ite militias had been influential.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki visited Amara on Monday.

"Military forces will not withdraw from Amara until we make sure the criminals and killers can never come back again," Maliki told local tribal leaders in a speech broadcast live on Iraqiya state television from Amara.

"We will not stop using force against those who revolt against the will of the nation."

Maliki was also expected to meet security leaders in Amara to get an update on the operation, which was launched last Thursday.

Security forces met no resistance from Sadr's Mehdi Army militia, which was under orders from the cleric to cooperate.

Many residents have said they feel safer since the offensive.