U.S. and Iraqi forces launched operations against the militia of Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr in a spring offensive in southern Basra, forcing many of the militants underground, and Thursday, Sadr called for an indefinite halt to combat operations.

The move comes amid claims in rural Badrah that, with the Shiite militia all but disbanded, al-Qaida elements are taking up positions in the area, The National newspaper in the United Arab Emirates reported Friday.

"When the Mehdi Army were here, we got some kind of protection," said 44-year-old resident Abu Muhannad. "Now they have gone, al-Qaida has returned."

The predominately Shiite Iraqi military has moved into the area to target the militias, athough because Badrah exists near the border with the ethnically mixed Diyala province, security in the area remains fragile.

"The fact is that al-Qaida activity has increased in the Badrah area," said police Maj. Haider al-Mirosh. "There is a long border to patrol and the cities to protect, and there are not enough people to do it."

U.S. military officials have moved to shore up security in the region by dispatching the Sunni-led Sons of Iraq into the area.

The Sunni paramilitary force is credited with overrunning al-Qaida elements in Anbar province.

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