Iraqi police film teenage 'bomber'

(Reuters)

In video footage released by Iraqi police yesterday, a teenage girl with an explosives vest strapped to her body is seen handcuffed to a metal grid, her head repeatedly falling forward in apparent exhaustion as policemen huddle around her.

After several minutes, the officers lift her robe, remove the vest and then take her for questioning, videotaping her in the presence of reporters. They prod her to confess to plans to stage a suicide attack, but she denies the allegation.

Police in Baqouba, where the girl was caught, said she was fitted with the explosives by female relatives of her husband. One police official alleged that the girl's family had links to the al-Qa'ida in Iraq terror network.

In displaying the dazed teenager police wanted to deal another blow to the terror network's reputation, officials said.

The circumstances of her arrest remain unclear. US officials said she had turned herself in, while police said she was caught after arousing suspicion.