Iraqi forces launch crackdown in volatile province

BAQUBA, Iraq, Sep 29 (Reuters) The Iraqi army launched a large operation against insurgents today in Diyala province, a volatile, ethnically-mixed area northeast of the capital that has seen some of the worst violence over recent months.

Iraqi soldiers sealed off streets and were searching houses in al-Gatoon, a restive neighbourhood in the western part of the provincial capital Baquba, said military spokesman Brigadier Qasim al-Moussawi.

He said 60 suspects had been arrested in the sweeps, including one he named as Atta Hadi al-Sadoun, accused of driving Shi'ite families out of a nearby town. So far the operation had been peaceful, with no reported casualties.

US commanders describe Diyala as ''the perfect storm'' -- an area where Kurds, Sunnis and Shi'ites all are competing for control of towns and villages. Like the ethnically and religiously mixed capital to the south, it has seen a surge of violence since an attack on a Shi'ite shrine in February.

The al-Gatoon neighbourhood of Baquba is where US forces killed a family of eight including four women in a gun battle and air strikes after taking fire during a raid on Wednesday.

''Our rapid response operation will continue until we have brought all insurgent activity in Baquba to a halt and imposed peace,'' Moussawi said.

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