Maliki seeks U.S. soldiers in deadly raid

BAGHDAD, April 27 (UPI) -- Iraq's prime minister demanded U.S. commanders turn over to Iraqi authorities the soldiers responsible for a deadly weekend raid for possible trial.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki issued a statement Monday calling Sunday's raid a "crime" that violated terms of the U.S.-Iraq security agreement reached last year, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The U.S. military said it alerted Iraqi authorities in advance of the raid in the city of Kut, which targeted members of Shiite militias allegedly funded by Iran. They said U.S. troops shot and killed one suspected weapons smuggler and arrested six militants, and that a woman was killed in the crossfire.

Iraqi media reported Maliki ordered the arrest of an Iraqi brigade commander and a battalion commander for permitting U.S. troops to carry out the operation without properly coordinating it with Iraqi government. The issue of immunity for U.S. troops in Iraq was a sensitive one during negotiations last year.

Unclear was the basis for Maliki's claim of jurisdiction over the U.S. soldiers who carried out the raid, the Journal said. The U.S.-Iraq agreement said on-duty U.S. soldiers aren't subject to Iraqi law; only that U.S. soldiers who commit major, intentional crimes off-base and off-duty are subject to Iraqi law.

The prime minister's action comes after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to Baghdad Sunday, when she reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to Iraq amid concerns the U.S. withdrawal could be a reason for the recent spike in violence.