POSTED: 0847 GMT (1647 HKT), October 18, 2006

ROME, Italy (AP) -- Italian police said Wednesday they have arrested more than 30 people as part of a crackdown on organized crime in southern Italy, including key figures who have been active for over three decades.

The arrests targeted the 'ndrangheta crime syndicate active the Calabria region, at the toe of boot-shaped Italy. The suspects were believed to be from rivaling clans of the organization, officials said.

Prosecutor Mario Spagnuolo, leading the investigation, said that 34 people were arrested in a series of raids earlier Wednesday. Police were still looking for two people, including Pasquale Condello, a suspected mobster believed to be the head of one of the clans and who has been on the run for years.

The arrests were carried out in Cosenza and Reggio Calabria, both in the region, as well as in cities across Italy, said the ANSA news agency.

Spagnuolo said the suspects are wanted in connection with around 40 murders in the area carried out during two Mafia wars over the period 1977-1990 approximately.

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