"The police, led by Jadan Dulaimi, a chief of the Hittine battalion in the Jerusalem Army under Saddam, have surrounded our offices since yesterday," said Mithal al-Allussi, a senior member of the INC.

"This is the result of allowing old Baathists into the police," Allussi said.

Allussi said Ramadi's governor had given the offices to the INC.

He described the raid as part of "the battle against our party and our leader Ahmed Chalabi by people who do not want the best for Iraq."

Chalabi and the US-led coalition in Iraq have quarrelled since April over the US-led efforts to rehabilitate former members of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein's Baath party.

They have also feuded over UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi's role in choosing the interim Iraqi government which will take over after the coalition hands over sovereignty on June 30.