'Sheikh' chosen to help run Basra was an Iraqi general

British forces have been plunged into the complex and potentially dangerous politics of post-war Iraq after selecting a former brigadier general in Saddam Hussein's army to help run Basra.

The disclosure of the Baathist past of the "sheikh" identified as a potential local leader by British forces this week came as military sources said troops had shot dead five armed Iraqis trying to rob a bank during continued looting in the city. One soldier, Lance-Serjeant Robert Giles of the Irish Guards, suffered a serious stomach wound.

The Shia sheikh, Muzahim Mustafa Kanan Tameemi, went public yesterday after meeting senior British officers trying to form a civil city administration. British military sources indicated that Mr Tameemi's involvement with the regime had not been recent. They also emphasised that they were satisfied Mr Tameemi was opposed to the regime.

The sources pointed out that Mr Tameemi's brother was murdered in 1994 after being taken away by Saddam Hussein's secret police. Family relatives say that even members from rival tribes accept the murdered man was "martyred" for his opposition to the Baghdad regime.