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British and Iraqi forces killed a man reportedly the Basra commander of Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army on Friday. Conflicting reports indicate Abu Qadir, also known as Wissam al-Waili, was confronted by security forces either while leaving a mosque or the Sadrist office, and died in an ensuing gunfight, along with one or possibly two of his aides.
"A force from Iraqi army and British troops killed today at 3:00 pm two leading figures from Mahdi army in central Basra," one source, who asked not to be named, told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
Britian's The Sun reported that Wissam al-Waili, 23, also known as Abu Qadir, was shot and killed along with his brother and two aides during the battle in the southern Iraqi city this afternoon.
The gunbattle began when British forces attempted to arrest al-Waili after he left a mosque in Jumhoriyah a middle class, residential area in central Basra, police told The Sun, reporting that Al-Waili and his three companions opened fire and were killed in the exchange.
British military spokesman Major David Gell said Abu Qadir and at least one aide were shot shortly after leaving Sadr's offices in the centre of the city, in an operation authorized by the Iraqi government.
According to Gell, Iraq security forces led the operation, with British troops acting as advisers.
"During the arrest operation the targeted individual was killed ... after he resisted arrest," he said.
Reuters reports a senior member in Sadr's movement blamed British troops for Abu Qadir's death, saying that the militant leader had just left Friday prayers when British forces ambushed and killed him with two other Mehdi Army members.
The Sadrist said their response to the killing would be limited to "political resistance". Gell said British forces were braced for any violent backlash.
The source who spoke to VOI also added that the situation in Basra has been tense following the shooting, "Mahdi army fighters were seen in all Basra streets and the situation in the city is expected to escalate."
