The arrest of a woman suspected of grooming rape victims to become female suicide bombers in Iraq has dealt a blow to the network of extremists that orchestrates such attacks, a senior Iraqi official said yesterday.

Samira Ahmed Jassim, 51, is accused of recruiting more than 80 women to become human bombs, including 28 who actually carried out attacks.

She has apparently confessed to helping to organise the rape of young Iraqi women.

She would then play on the shame associated with victims of rape in Iraqi society to convince the women to become suicide bombers as their only means of escape.

Her apparent confession was broadcast widely on Iraqi media, along with a video of Jassim, nicknamed “the mother of believers”, talking about her alleged crimes.

Major-General Qassim al-Moussawi, a Baghdad security spokesman, said that her arrest by Iraqi security forces on January 21 was a significant breakthrough.

“It definitely has an effect [on the wider security situation] if the person in charge or the recruiter is killed or arrested,” he said.

“Al-Qaeda is like a pyramid, so if you remove the head of that pyramid, the rest of it will start to fall apart.”

Female suicide bombers became a weapon of choice for al-Qaeda and other extremist groups in Iraq over the past year because they can penetrate more easily the defences of the increasingly competent Iraqi security forces.

Women are able to bypass the many checkpoints across the country, which are typically watched by male guards. Social rules prevent men from frisking women.

To counter this loophole the authorities have been recruiting more policewomen and female guards but there are still too few.

The traditional black robes worn by Muslim women are ideal for concealing an explosives vest. Jassim, who is wearing long, black robes and a headscarf, is shown in the video apparently confessing to recruiting and training women to become bombers. She also described how she would escort the women to an orchard for insurgent training.

Times Recommends

• Would you live on the wrong side of the Berlin Wall?
• Wish you were here, says Iraq tourist board
• Russian policeman’s corruption plea to Putin