Saturday, March 24, 2007
Sunni tribal leader tells U.S. to tackle Shia militias
Security, Politics
(AP) - A prominent Iraqi Sunni leader said Friday that the insurgency in Iraq could end if the U.S. showed determination to stop the influence of pro-Iranian Shiite militias there. "The Americans must act seriously and abolish those militias, confiscate their weapons, arrest their criminals and at the same time stop the Iranian influence which is penetrating all of Iraq, including the government," said Sheik Majeed al-Gaood, a prominent tribal leader in Anbar province, the heartland of the Sunni insurgency.
Al-Gaood is a leading member of a Sunni family that plays a major role in tribal politics in Anbar. He is believed to have close ties with factions of former dictator Saddam Hussein's disbanded Baath Party. Al-Gaood has previously said a truce with the United States was possible if the Shiite-dominated government of Iraq were "dismissed" and new elections held. He said he was committed to the unity of Iraq and wanted sectarian violence to end.
Al-Gaood is a leading member of a Sunni family that plays a major role in tribal politics in Anbar. He is believed to have close ties with factions of former dictator Saddam Hussein's disbanded Baath Party. Al-Gaood has previously said a truce with the United States was possible if the Shiite-dominated government of Iraq were "dismissed" and new elections held. He said he was committed to the unity of Iraq and wanted sectarian violence to end.
Al-Gaood suggested that the end of the insurgency was contingent, however, on ending Iranian influence in Iraq. "Iran is a worse enemy for Iraq than the United States," he said. Al-Gaood heads a group called "Wahaj el Iraq," or "Flame of Iraq," a Sunni-dominated Iraqi political faction believed to have close ties to the disbanded Baath Party. Al-Gaood said that talks with Shiite militias were out of the question and that his group would side with all "Iraqis who reject the occupation and want to preserve the unity of Iraq."
Labels: Al Anbar, Baath Party, Flame of Iraq, Iran, Sheik Majeed al-Gaood, Shiite militias, tribal leaders, U.S., Wahaj el Iraq
