Iraqi forces arrested suspected insurgents who allegedly planned to target government ministries and seized a large cache of explosives Tuesday, in a crackdown across the capital that brought parts of the city to a standstill. The security measures demonstrated the ever-present fear that insurgents will carry out more bombings, like the ones against government buildings in past months that killed hundreds, ahead of the March elections. Maj. Gen. Qassim Al-Moussawi, the capital's top military spokesman, said security forces had seized 440 pounds (200 kilograms) of TNT, 440 pounds (200 kilograms) of C4 explosive and 66 gallons (250 liters) of ammonium nitrate, an ingredient to make explosives, and 60 mortar shells. Twenty-five suspects who had been planning an attack that morning were held, he said.
