Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki on Saturday criticized the US military operation in Baghdad's Shiite bastion of Sadr City, hours after the US military killed 26 suspected militants in the capital's eastern neighborhood.

Maliki also ordered the Iraqi special forces not to take part in any military operation without prior approval from Iraqi military command.

In a statement, Maliki said that his government "vehemently rejects any military operation by the Multi-National Forces in any Iraqi province or city without prior approval of the command of the Iraqi military forces or coordination with the command."
 
The statement also urged the Iraqi troops to abide by orders, made by the higher national authorities, and warned against launching attacks against civilians.

The Iraqi government would seek clarification from the Multi-National Forces about the operation that was carried out in the Sadr City neighborhood at dawn today.

Earlier, the US military said that 26 militants, believed to have ties with "Iranian terror network," were killed during raids on Baghdad's eastern neighborhood of Sadr City during pre-dawn hours on Saturday.

The troops detained 17 suspected militants, the statement said, adding that there were no US casualties during the raids, a military statement said.

"It is believed that the suspected terrorists have close ties to Iranian terror networks and are responsible for facilitating the flow of lethal aid into Iraq," the statement added.

Sadr City is a stronghold of Mahdi Army militia loyal to radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

The US military frequently accused Iran of providing Iraqi Shiite militia with weapons and parts for sophisticated armored-piercing bombs, which has been denied by Iran.

US and Iraqi security forces have staged a security plan in the capital since Feb. 14 with an aim of putting rampant violence under control.

(Xinhua News Agency July 2, 2007)