The group said they were arrested without a warrant after the conclusion of the protests while eating together at a restaurant, and condemned what they said was the targeting of free expression in Iraq during the demonstrations on Friday.

"Freedom of opinion is going through its worst days in Iraq," they said in a statement read at a news conference in Baghdad.

"The targeting of freedom of opinion and journalists represents a major strike against a pillar of democracy in Iraq."

The four -- Hussam Saraie of Al-Sabah Al-Jadid newspaper, Ali Abdul Sada of the Al-Mada daily, Ali al-Mussawi of Sabah newspaper, and Hadi al-Mehdi of Demozee radio -- said they were held for nine hours and forced to sign a document, the contents of which were not revealed to them.

They said they would sue Maliki in his capacity as commander-in-chief of the armed forces for being arrested without a warrant and being tortured.

Mehdi described the conditions of his detention as "brutal and inhuman", saying soldiers bundled him into the trunk of a military Humvee, tore off his shirt to blindfold him, electroshocked him and repeatedly insulted him during interrogations.

"The interrogator tried to force me to confess that I provoked protesters to overthrow the regime," he said. "They tried to make me sign a confession that I was funded by Baathists," he added, referring to loyalists of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party.

Mehdi said when he was eventually released, he was met by the head of security for Baghdad's east bank, General Abdulkarim al-Izzi, who apologised for the conditions of his arrest.

Kartan Adnan, another journalist working for al-Diyarsat satellite television told AFP he and his cameraman were detained by security forces for several hours and repeatedly physically assaulted.

Baghdad security spokesman Major General Qassim Atta told AFP that he would open an investigation into the journalists' detention and pledged to "punish those who dealt with them in this way".

The journalists had been covering protests in Baghdad attended by around 5,000 demonstrators, the largest of 17 separate rallies nationwide on Friday, billed as a "Day of Rage".

Protesters in the capital railed against poor basic services, high levels of corruption and a lack of jobs, but were eventually dispersed in the evening when security forces fired water cannon and used tear gas.

A total of 16 people died and more than 130 were wounded in clashes with police during the demonstrations across Iraq.

earlier related report
Top Shiite cleric calls for progress after Iraq demos
Najaf, Iraq (AFP) Feb 26, 2011 - The spiritual leader of Iraq's Shiite majority urged politicians on Saturday to slash their benefits and improve public services, a day after thousands took part in a deadly nationwide "Day of Rage".

The cabinet is to dedicate its meeting on Sunday to the issues raised in the Friday protests, while a human rights group said investigations had to be opened into the deaths of demonstrators who rallied against high levels of corruption, unemployment and poor public services.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani said the government needed to make progress on improving power supplies, providing food for the needy, creating jobs and combating corruption.

He also called on Iraq's leaders to "cancel unacceptable benefits" given to current and former politicians, and said they must "not invent unnecessary government positions that cost Iraq money".

Sistani, who is based in the central shrine city of Najaf and rarely wades into politics, warned that the "current way of managing the state will lead to delays in taking radical solutions for people's problems."

State television quoted government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh as saying that the cabinet would discuss the problems and work on an action plan.

His remarks came after New York-based Human Rights Watch called on Iraq to open inquiries into all deaths as well as any illegal use of force by security forces.

"Any unlawful use of force ... should lead to the prosecution of those responsible," the New York-based watchdog said.

While the majority of Friday's protests were generally peaceful, clashes with police left 16 demonstrators dead and more than 130 injured, according to an AFP tally based on official sources.

Four government buildings were set ablaze and a provincial governor resigned on Friday.

Another protester was killed in clashes at a rally on Saturday near the western city of Ramadi, and one died in demonstrations in the northern Kurdish city of Sulaimaniyah, which has seen several protests in the past week.

In Baghdad, traffic was once again allowed to pass through Tahrir Square where 5,000 demonstrators had gathered, the biggest of at least 17 separate protests across Iraq.

Despite most traffic curbs being lifted in the capital, concrete blast walls remained stationed on Jumhuriyah Bridge, which connects Tahrir Square to Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, home to the US embassy and parliament.

On Friday, security forces at the square used water cannons and tear gas to disperse angry demonstrators, who had thrown stones, shoes and plastic bottles at riot police and soldiers blocking the bridge. An interior ministry official said 15 people were wounded.

North of the capital, clashes between security forces and demonstrators in the cities of Mosul and Tikrit each left five people dead, while two died in the town of Hawija.

Two demonstrators were killed in Samarra and a 15-year-old boy died in the mostly Kurdish town of Kalar in central Diyala province. A 23-year-old protester who was wounded in clashes in the port city of Basra on Friday died in hospital on Saturday morning.

The governor of Nineveh province, which surrounds Mosul, on Saturday blamed security forces from Baghdad for the deaths in his province, telling AFP: "The gunfire was not carried out by the guards and security of Nineveh."

Rallies in Iraq have called for improved public services, more jobs and less corruption, and some for broader political reforms.

Rated the fourth-most corrupt country in the world by Transparency International, Iraq suffers from poor electricity and water provision, as well as high unemployment, nearly eight years after the US-led invasion.

In a bid to head off protests, Iraq has cut politicians' pay, increased food aid for the needy and delayed a planned law that would have raised import tariffs with knock-on effects on the price of basic goods.

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