The US forces have arrested two key leaders of al-Qaida terrorist group in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, the US military said on Saturday.

The two men were Taha Ibrahim Yasin Baker, known as Abu Fatima,and Hamid Saeed Ismael Mustafa, whose alias was Abu Shahad, according to a US military statement.

The two suspected heads of al-Qaida organization in Mosul were captured by the US and Iraqi troops on Sept. 5 as they were holding a meeting in the city, some 400 km north of Baghdad, the statement said.

It said Abu Fatima took over the leadership twelve days ago, after his predecessor Abu Zubair was captured by the Multi-national forces in mid August.

"The simultaneous capture of both leaders damages the organizational structure of al-Qaida in Iraqi northern network," the statement said.

In a statement on Friday, the US forces announced capture of the leader of Ansar al-Sunna militant group in Mosul, Dara Muhammed, on Sept. 6.

(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2005)