Iraqi detainees freed for Ramadan

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The US military in Iraq has announced it is starting a programme to release between 50 and 80 detainees per day to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Maj Gen Douglas Stone said Operation Lion's Paw would be a non-political, non-sectarian process, with both Sunnis and Shia prisoners equally eligible.

About 20,000 people are held in US military-run detention centres in Iraq.

Ramadan began on Thursday for Iraq's minority Sunni population, while it starts on Friday for the Shia majority.

Muslims mark the ninth month of the Islamic calendar by fasting from dawn until dusk in order to increase self-control.

Curfew eased

To make it easier for Baghdad residents to break their fasts in the evening, the Iraqi authorities have relaxed the nightly imposed curfew on the capital.

The curfew will now begin at midnight local time (2000 GMT) rather than 2300, and continue until 0500.

A vehicle ban in Baghdad on Fridays - the Muslim day of prayer - has also been lifted for the month.

Nevertheless, Iraqi security forces have been put on high alert, as a number of large-scale attacks have occurred during Ramadan since 2003.

"They have been told to observe any dubious gatherings or inform bomb squads immediately if they see any car parked on sidewalks," an interior ministry official told the AFP news agency.