<table> </table> BAGHDAD | Iraqi police commandos captured the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq in a raid in the northern city of Mosul, Iraqi officials said Thursday.</p><p>The capture could mark a significant blow to the Sunni insurgency in its last urban stronghold.</p><p>Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Askari said the arrest of Abu Ayyub al-Masri &#8212; also known as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir &#8212; was reported by the Iraqi commander in Mosul, where insurgents have sought to establish a foothold after being widely uprooted from Baghdad and surrounding areas last year.</p><p>The U.S. military in Baghdad said it was &#8220;checking with Iraqi authorities to confirm the accuracy of this information.&#8221;</p><p>Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said the arrest occurred &#8220;at midnight, and during the primary investigations, he admitted that he is Abu Hamza al-Muhajir.&#8221;</p><p>Khalaf told Iraqi state television that al-Masri was arrested during a police raid, but gave no other details.</p><p>&#8220;Now a broader investigation of him is being conducted,&#8221; he said.</p><p>His apprehension would carry major symbolic value for Iraqi commanders, who have led operations in the Mosul area and have sought to counter worries that Iraqi forces lack the training and discipline to wage a head-on fight against insurgents.</p><p>Unclear is how much the reported loss of al-Masri would disrupt al-Qaida in Iraq or its long-term ability to wage suicide attacks and other strikes. Al-Masri took over al-Qaida in Iraq after Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed June 7, 2006, in a U.S. air strike northeast of Baghdad. &#8220;The commander of Ninevah military operations informed me that Iraqi troops captured Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq,&#8221; al-Askari told The Associated Press by telephone.</p><p>However, there have been false alarms at least twice &#8212; in 2006 and May 2007 &#8212; about al-Masri. Any direct links are murky between al-Masri&#8217;s insurgents and the terror network of Osama bin Laden. But al-Masri has followed a path that brought him in contact with some of bin Laden&#8217;s top lieutenants.</p><p>The arrest was also significant for its location.</p><p>Mosul was considered the last important urban staging ground for al-Qaida in Iraqi and allied groups after losing strongholds in Baghdad and other areas during the U.S. troop &#8220;surge&#8221; last year.