An al Qaida militant suspected of planning an attack targeting the World Cup in South Africa next month has been detained by Iraqi security forces.
The militant was an officer in the Saudi army, Baghdad security services spokesman Major General Qassim al-Moussawi said.
Abdullah Azam Saleh al-Qahtani is suspected of planning a "terrorist act" in South Africa during the World Cup, beginning June 11, Gen al-Moussawi said.
He added that al-Qahtani entered Iraq in 2004 and is suspected of carrying out several attacks in the capital and elsewhere in the country.
Despite the killing last month of two top figures from al Qaida in Iraq in a US-assisted military operation, attacks blamed on the group have continued.
Today, assailants disguised in Iraqi military uniforms beheaded a Sunni cleric and stuck his head on an electricity pole in the town where he preached against al Qaida, the cleric's son and Iraqi police said.
The son of Abdullah Jassim Shakour said the gunmen wearing military uniforms came to the family house in the town of Sadiyah, north of Baghdad, took his father into a room, killed him and walked away with his head.
The family found the headless body in the house, said the son, Mohammed. When they went to report the killing to the police, they saw his head on an electricity pole in the centre of the town.
One of the victim's neighbours said: "I was sleeping and screams from the street woke me up. When I stepped out of my house, I saw the head of the cleric on the top of the pole."
The neighbour said the cleric was known for speaking against al Qaida and called on worshippers to fight the militant group during last Friday's prayers.
A police official confirmed that four gunmen stormed the house in the morning and beheaded him.
Insurgents have often used Iraqi uniforms to disguise themselves during attacks. The uniforms are widely available in Iraq.
Violence in Iraq has fallen dramatically over the past few years, though Sunnis who have revolted against al Qaida in Iraq or are perceived as cooperating with the Shiite-led government are often targeted.