Shafaq News/ Iraqi security forces arrested a 23-year-old man linked to the religious sect "Al-Qurban," also known as "Al-Ali al-Alahiya," in the southern town of Souq Al-Shuyoukh, Dhi Qar governorate, a security source said on Saturday.

“The suspect had been under surveillance for seven days before his arrest,” the source told Shafaq News Agency.

Authorities allege he distributed pamphlets encouraging citizens to “reject the country’s religious authorities.”

The Qurban group has surfaced in multiple areas across Iraq.

The extremist group is believed to have emerged during the lifetime of the late religious leader Mohammed Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, though he disassociated himself from their practices. None of the Shia religious authorities (marjaʿ) recognize or endorse this group.