BAQUBA, Iraq • Iraqi military forces have defeated what they called an attempt to create a breakaway Sunni religious territory in Iraq's eastern Diyala province, an army spokesman said yesterday.

"We foiled an attempt to establish an emirate in Diyala," said Brigadier General Shakr Al Kaabi of the Iraqi Army's Fifth Division on the second day of a wide-ranging operation sweeping through the provincial seat of Baquba. He added that according to their intelligence, this "emirate" – a term which can mean an independent state under a religious leader – was to have been announced at the end of Ramadan.

One of Iraq's most mixed Sunni-Shiite provinces, Diyala has in recent months been the site of brutal attacks mostly aimed at driving out civilians from rival sectarian groups.

"Inside the Al Aqsa mosque we found leaflets calling for the forcible displacement of Shi’ites and promoting sectarian strife," Kaabi said, adding that they also found explosives tucked inside a coffin hidden in the mosque.

By the second day of the operation, 130 people had been arrested, including 85 who were on wanted lists.

Diyala has long been a haven for extremist Sunni groups.