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Four dead in Jordan security sweep
MAAN, Jordan (CNN) -- Jordanian special forces Monday held this southern Islamist stronghold under siege as they attempted to round up residents wanted for crimes, including arms and drug dealing, a Jordanian official said. Four people have been killed -- three armed men and one police officer -- and others were hurt Sunday and Monday as special forces and residents clashed, according to Jordan's information minister. Jordianian officials said 25 people had been arrested, ten of them non-Jordanians. Tribal elders have rejected demands by the government to hand over wanted men. Tensions have been high in the city since Muslim fundamentalist leader Mohammad Chalaby, also known as Abu Sayyaf, was wounded during a shootout with police last month. Chalaby escaped and his supporters are said to be protecting him. The roundup also comes amid a nationwide search for the gunman who assassinated U.S. diplomat Laurence Foley a couple of weeks ago. Sources familiar with the sweep said Jordanian soldiers and police were conducting a house to house searches for illegal weapons. The Moslem Brotherhood and the Islamic Action Front, the largest parties in Jordan, called on the government not to use force but stopped short of condemning the government action in Maan. An Islamic analyst told CNN the parties do not consider Chalaby an Islamic leader but a local leader with no ties to either party using illegal means to control Maan.
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