Cambodia detains Khmer Rouge suspects

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Cambodian police took a man and his wife into detention Monday in Phnom Penh for questioning about their roles in the Khmer Rouge militant regime.

The detentions were authorized by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, an institution sanctioned by the United Nations and the Cambodian government to prosecute members of the hard-line fascist movement.

Ieng Sary, the brother-in-law of the movement's leader, Pol Pot, was detained along with his wife, Ieng Thirith. He was foreign minister in the regime, while his wife was education and social affairs minister, a correspondent for China's Xinhua news agency reported.

A police source who asked not to be identified said formal charges hadn't been filed against either of the Iengs.

The Khmer Rouge regime from 1975-79 has been blamed for the deaths of 1.7 million people, the report said.