Iraqi forces hold Saddam's nephew

Iraq has been plagued by violent insurgent attacks

One of Saddam Hussein's nephews has been arrested on suspicion of being one of the chief financiers of the Iraqi insurgency, officials say.

Police held Yasser Sabawi Ibrahim after a tip-off from the Syrian authorities.

Syria has been under intense pressure from the US to prevent militants crossing into Iraq.

The arrest came before the head of the Arab League, Amr Moussa, arrived in Baghdad on his first visit since the US-led war in Iraq.

Mr Moussa, who has warned that Iraq is on the verge of civil war, arrived in Baghdad on Thursday for what officials said would be a mission to promote national reconciliation.

Arab League officials said Mr Moussa was expected to meet Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari, President Jalal Talabani and Iraqi Shia spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

Mr Moussa - who has been criticised for not doing enough to support the post-Saddam Hussein government - is in Iraq for a three-day visit to discuss an Arab initiative for a national reconciliation conference.

Also on Wednesday, four US soldiers were killed and at least five were injured in two separate bomb attacks in Balad and Tikrit, north of the Iraqi capital.

Their deaths bring the total of US troops killed in Iraq to just under 2,000.

'Inciting violence'

Mr Ibrahim is the son of Saddam's half-brother, Sabawi Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti, and the brother of Ayman Sabawi, who was recently sentenced to life in prison for funding insurgents and making bombs.

Mr Ibrahim was arrested during a protest against the trial of Saddam Hussein near his home town of Tikrit, national security adviser Muwafaq al-Rubaie said.

He was allegedly "inciting violence and giving money and bribes to the youth to turn a peaceful demonstration into a violent one", Mr Rubaie said.

"We believe there is strong evidence that he is one of the channels that brings in funds used to finance the terrorist operations in the north and the north-east of the country," Mr Rubaie said.

Iraqi officials say Syria expelled Mr Ibrahim and escorted him to Iraq, later alerting US military intelligence.

In July, the US Treasury blocked the assets of six of Mr Tikriti's sons, after accusing them of funding Iraq's insurgency from Syria.

Mr Tikriti was captured by US and Iraqi forces in February, on suspicion of planning and carrying out terrorist acts.

Oil bombing

Also on Thursday, insurgents bombed an oil pipeline in northern Iraq, the second attack in the north in 10 days.

Oil officials said a pipeline feeding oil from a field near the town of Kirkuk to a refinery north of Baghdad was set on fire.

They said the damage had affected exports to Turkey - which had only recently restarted, after damage from previous attacks had been repaired.

Repeated sabotage has meant that Iraqi oil production has remained at around 2m barrels a day, compared to 3m barrels a day in 1990.