The US command said yesterday the highest-ranking Iraqi in the leadership of Al-Qaida in Iraq has been arrested, adding that information from him indicates the group's foreign-based leadership wields considerable influence over the Iraqi chapter.

Khaled Abdul-Fattah Dawoud Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, also known as Abu Shahid, was captured in Mosul on July 4, said Brigadier General Kevin Bergner, a military spokesman.

"Al-Mashhadani is believed to be the most senior Iraqi in the Al-Qaida in Iraq network," Bergner said. He said al-Mashhadani was a close associate of Abu Ayub al-Masri, the Egyptian-born head of Al-Qaida in Iraq.

Bergner said al-Mashhadani served as an intermediary between al-Masri and Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida No 2 Ayman al-Zawahri.

"In fact, communication between the senior al-Qaida leadership and al-Masri frequently went through al-Mashhadani," Bergner said. He added: "There is a clear connection between Al-Qaida in Iraq and Al-Qaida senior leadership outside Iraq."

The degree of control and supervision between bin Laden's inner circle and the Iraq branch has been the subject of debate, with some private analysts believing the foreign-based leadership plays only a minor role in day to day operations.

(China Daily via agencies July 19, 2007)