Iraqi security forces have arrested dozens of people, including the son of a leading Sunni Arab politician, after two explosives laden cars were found near the politician's office in Baghdad.
The politician, Adnan al-Dulaimi, said police raided his home Friday morning and detained about 30 people, including his son.
On Thursday, police said they found and detonated two car bombs inside Dulaimi's office complex. Dulaimi insists the cars were found near his office, not inside the complex.
Dulaimi leads one of the parties in Iraq's main Sunni parliamentary bloc, the Iraqi Accordance Front. He is a strong critic of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shi'ite.
In other news, Australia's incoming prime minister said Friday he wants to withdraw his nation's 550 combat troops from Iraq by the middle of next year.
About 1,000 other Australian troops are involved in non-combat operations in and around Iraq.
In another development, several hundred Iraqi refugees returned to Iraq Thursday in a convoy of 20 buses from neighboring Syria. The refugee convoy is the first to be funded by Iraq's government, part of a plan to speed up the return of those who fled abroad. Iraqi officials who greeted the returning refugees in Baghdad said each family will receive $750 to help in resettlement.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
