Tuesday, August 28, 2007
A move towards national reconciliation
Politics
(The Guardian) - Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, and fellow leaders in the country have reached consensus on key areas of national reconciliation, under mounting US pressure to demonstrate political progress on the eve of a key report to Congress on the Baghdad security "surge". The Shia prime minister appeared on television flanked by Jalal Talabani, the country's Kurdish president, and the Sunni vice-president, Tareq al-Hashemi, to announce a deal on easing restrictions on former members of the Ba'ath party joining the civil service and military.
Easing de-Ba'athification laws passed after the 2003 US invasion has long been seen as a vital step if disenchanted Sunnis, who formed the backbone of Saddam Hussein's regime and, since its fall, of the insurgency, are to be persuaded to take part in Iraqi political life. Agreement was also reported on holding provincial elections and releasing detainees held without charge across the country, two more of the "benchmarks" set by the Bush administration for political movement it hopes will stave off mounting congressional demands for a withdrawal from Iraq.
It was not immediately clear how, or when, these moves would be implemented and how far they would go to reversing the almost total Sunni boycott of the cabinet - the centre of Mr Maliki's difficulties. The beleaguered prime minister, facing mounting criticism from within the Bush administration, announced earlier that Mr Hashemi's Iraqi Islamic party was about to join with the four Shia and Kurdish parties which recently forged an alliance.
Mr Maliki said a committee formed by the parties had reviewed the current political stalemate and "accomplished some solutions". Last week a US national intelligence report cast doubt on Mr Maliki's ability to heal the country's sectarian divide and predicted "the Iraqi government will become more precarious over the next six to 12 months".
There were further signs of Mr Maliki's weakening grip on power when the former temporary prime minister, Ayad Allawi, removed his faction from the "unity" government on Saturday and put himself forward as an alternative. The growing pressure on the Iraqi leader comes at a sensitive moment in relations between Washington and Baghdad. The American commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, will soon present Congress with his analysis of the success or otherwise of the so-called "surge".
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defence said last night that British forces have withdrawn from a base in Basra that they had shared with Iraqi police in the first phase of a plan to move all troops out of the city centre. A small number of troops had been stationed at the provincial joint coordination centre where they had been helping to train Iraqi police. Control of the facility has now been handed over to the Iraqi army.
Easing de-Ba'athification laws passed after the 2003 US invasion has long been seen as a vital step if disenchanted Sunnis, who formed the backbone of Saddam Hussein's regime and, since its fall, of the insurgency, are to be persuaded to take part in Iraqi political life. Agreement was also reported on holding provincial elections and releasing detainees held without charge across the country, two more of the "benchmarks" set by the Bush administration for political movement it hopes will stave off mounting congressional demands for a withdrawal from Iraq.
It was not immediately clear how, or when, these moves would be implemented and how far they would go to reversing the almost total Sunni boycott of the cabinet - the centre of Mr Maliki's difficulties. The beleaguered prime minister, facing mounting criticism from within the Bush administration, announced earlier that Mr Hashemi's Iraqi Islamic party was about to join with the four Shia and Kurdish parties which recently forged an alliance.
Mr Maliki said a committee formed by the parties had reviewed the current political stalemate and "accomplished some solutions". Last week a US national intelligence report cast doubt on Mr Maliki's ability to heal the country's sectarian divide and predicted "the Iraqi government will become more precarious over the next six to 12 months".
There were further signs of Mr Maliki's weakening grip on power when the former temporary prime minister, Ayad Allawi, removed his faction from the "unity" government on Saturday and put himself forward as an alternative. The growing pressure on the Iraqi leader comes at a sensitive moment in relations between Washington and Baghdad. The American commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, will soon present Congress with his analysis of the success or otherwise of the so-called "surge".
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defence said last night that British forces have withdrawn from a base in Basra that they had shared with Iraqi police in the first phase of a plan to move all troops out of the city centre. A small number of troops had been stationed at the provincial joint coordination centre where they had been helping to train Iraqi police. Control of the facility has now been handed over to the Iraqi army.
Labels: Basra, British forces, debaathification, detainees, Jalal Talabani, national reconciliation, Nouri Al-Maliki, provincial elections, Tariq Al Hashemi
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Accord Front: Anbar Salvation Council’s Ministers (Nominees) Will NOT Represent Us
Politics, Tribal
(Badr Newspaper) - 15 AUG - Accord Front spokesman, Salim Abid Al Jabouri stated, “The Anbar Salvation Council’s nominees who are intended to replace Accord Front’s Ministers (who withdrew from Al Maliki’s Administration) do not represent the sect (all Sunnis), they only represent themselves.” On the other hand, Iraq’s Vice President Tariq Al Hashimi has made the following demand: all of the political blocs must attend the upcoming “meeting of top-level political leaders”. Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki has called for all of Iraq’s political leaders to participate in this meeting.
Ali Al Barrak, a spokesman for the Vice President’s (Al Hashimi’s) office, said: Al Hashimi has accepted the invitation to attend this conference of top-level political leadership, however, he made the following condition: all of Iraq’s political leaders must take part in this meeting! On another hand, Ayad Al Samaraie, the Accord Front’s Chief (in Iraq’s Parliament) emphasized the necessity of the government’s fulfilling the Constitution. He continued: Iraq is witnessing a political crisis; because, the leaders have abandoned the political programs. They abandoned the goals which all the sides participating in the political process had agreed on. Al Samaraie told the press, “Abandonment of the Constitution is the reason for Iraq’s political crisis.”
Recently, Al Maliki said that this (top-level political leaders) meeting will discuss: the political blocs’ demands, and which of these demands that we can accomplis but, only on the condition that the political blocs accept the need to: approve key legislation in the Parliament, and hold a confirmation vote (concerning the Sadr Movement’s six) Ministers who resigned. It has been a month since he (Al Maliki) submitted a list of replacement Ministers to Parliament.
It is expected that this top-level meeting will include many individuals, such as: the (Iraqi) Republic’s President – Jalal Talabani, plus Iraq’s two Vice Presidents – Adil Abd Al Mahdi and Tariq Al Hashimi, (Prime Minister) Al Maliki, Kurdistan’s Regional President – Massoud Barzani, and other leaders of (Iraq’s) political blocs.
Ali Al Barrak, a spokesman for the Vice President’s (Al Hashimi’s) office, said: Al Hashimi has accepted the invitation to attend this conference of top-level political leadership, however, he made the following condition: all of Iraq’s political leaders must take part in this meeting! On another hand, Ayad Al Samaraie, the Accord Front’s Chief (in Iraq’s Parliament) emphasized the necessity of the government’s fulfilling the Constitution. He continued: Iraq is witnessing a political crisis; because, the leaders have abandoned the political programs. They abandoned the goals which all the sides participating in the political process had agreed on. Al Samaraie told the press, “Abandonment of the Constitution is the reason for Iraq’s political crisis.”
Recently, Al Maliki said that this (top-level political leaders) meeting will discuss: the political blocs’ demands, and which of these demands that we can accomplis but, only on the condition that the political blocs accept the need to: approve key legislation in the Parliament, and hold a confirmation vote (concerning the Sadr Movement’s six) Ministers who resigned. It has been a month since he (Al Maliki) submitted a list of replacement Ministers to Parliament.
It is expected that this top-level meeting will include many individuals, such as: the (Iraqi) Republic’s President – Jalal Talabani, plus Iraq’s two Vice Presidents – Adil Abd Al Mahdi and Tariq Al Hashimi, (Prime Minister) Al Maliki, Kurdistan’s Regional President – Massoud Barzani, and other leaders of (Iraq’s) political blocs.
Labels: Anbar Salvation Council, Ayad Al Samaraie, constitution, Iraqi Accordance Front, Salim Abid Al Jabouri, Tariq Al Hashemi
Sunnis shun Maliki's new alliance of Kurds and Shiites
Politics
(Gulf News) - The Iraqi prime minister and president on Thursday announced a new alliance of moderate Shiites and Kurds, saying Sunni moderates refused to join but the door remained open to them. Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki said the agreement was the first step to unblock political stagnation that has gripped his Shiite-led government since it first took power in May2006.
Pressure has been mounting against Al Maliki who has been criticised for having a Shiite bias and failing to stop the sectarian violence, which persists in Iraq despite the presence of tens of thousands of extra US troops. The announcement of the political accord after three days of intense negotiations in the capital was disappointing because it did not include Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq Al Hashemi and his moderate Iraqi Islamic Party.
President Jalal Talabani and Al Maliki were flanked by the leader of the northern autonomous Kurdish region, Massoud Barzani, and Shiite Vice President Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi at a news conference. The four men signed a three-page agreement that they said ensures them a majority in the 275-member parliament that would allow movement of critical US-demanded legislation.
Talabani, a Kurd, said Al Hashemi refused the invitation to join in the new political grouping but "the door is still open to them and they are welcome at any time." Al Maliki also called on the Sunni Accordance Front, which includes Al Hashemi's party, to return to the government, to heal a rift that opened when the bloc's five Cabinet ministers quit the government.
The four-party agreement was unveiled four weeks before the top US commander in Iraq Gen. David Petraeus and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker are to deliver a progress report on Iraq to Congress. "We have relegated efforts to topple the government to the past. We are now in a new stage," said Al Maliki's adviser, Yassin Majeed. "We will keep working to bring the Accordance Front back, but if they insist we will have a majority in parliament and bring in new ministers."
Omar Abdul-Sattar, a lawmaker with the Iraqi Islamic Party, said Kurdish representatives issued the invitaton on Wednesday and it was refused. "We said we are not ready tojoin this alliance at the current time," he said.
Pressure has been mounting against Al Maliki who has been criticised for having a Shiite bias and failing to stop the sectarian violence, which persists in Iraq despite the presence of tens of thousands of extra US troops. The announcement of the political accord after three days of intense negotiations in the capital was disappointing because it did not include Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq Al Hashemi and his moderate Iraqi Islamic Party.
President Jalal Talabani and Al Maliki were flanked by the leader of the northern autonomous Kurdish region, Massoud Barzani, and Shiite Vice President Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi at a news conference. The four men signed a three-page agreement that they said ensures them a majority in the 275-member parliament that would allow movement of critical US-demanded legislation.
Talabani, a Kurd, said Al Hashemi refused the invitation to join in the new political grouping but "the door is still open to them and they are welcome at any time." Al Maliki also called on the Sunni Accordance Front, which includes Al Hashemi's party, to return to the government, to heal a rift that opened when the bloc's five Cabinet ministers quit the government.
The four-party agreement was unveiled four weeks before the top US commander in Iraq Gen. David Petraeus and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker are to deliver a progress report on Iraq to Congress. "We have relegated efforts to topple the government to the past. We are now in a new stage," said Al Maliki's adviser, Yassin Majeed. "We will keep working to bring the Accordance Front back, but if they insist we will have a majority in parliament and bring in new ministers."
Omar Abdul-Sattar, a lawmaker with the Iraqi Islamic Party, said Kurdish representatives issued the invitaton on Wednesday and it was refused. "We said we are not ready tojoin this alliance at the current time," he said.
Labels: Iraqi Accordance Front, Iraqi Islamic Party, Jalal Talabani, Massoud Barzani, Nouri Al-Maliki, Tariq Al Hashemi
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
U.S. - "major" political changes to follow political summit
Politics
(Gulf News) - Under pressure from the Congress, Arab states and Sunni Iraqi leaders, the US administration on Tuesday set the stage for "major" political changes in Iraq. The changes will be in "the structure, nature and direction of the Iraqi state," a senior American official in Baghdad was quoted by AP as saying. He did not give out details, but the plan is expected to be high on the agenda of a 'crisis summit' which would be attended by key Iraqi leaders who seek to save the crumbling national unity government of Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki.
About 50 political leaders had "a friendly meeting" over lunch yesterday at the Baghdad residence of President Jalal Talabani, but the meeting was overshadowed by a suicide attack which killed 10 people in the Iraqi capital. Also, a key player and one of the most senior Sunni Arabs in the government, Vice-President Tariq Al Hashemi, failed to attend Talabani's luncheon. Al Hashemi, a critic of Al Maliki's alleged sectarian bias, said members of his Iraqi Islamic Party, part of the Sunni political bloc that quit the government, would hold meetings with leaders from regional Kurdish parties today before the summit, which will be held later this week.
The summit had been in question until a last-minute push from US Ambassador Ryan Crocker who called on Al Hashemi. Sunni leaders and some Arab countries have reportedly accused Al Maliki of sectarian bias and harbouring close ties with Iran.
About 50 political leaders had "a friendly meeting" over lunch yesterday at the Baghdad residence of President Jalal Talabani, but the meeting was overshadowed by a suicide attack which killed 10 people in the Iraqi capital. Also, a key player and one of the most senior Sunni Arabs in the government, Vice-President Tariq Al Hashemi, failed to attend Talabani's luncheon. Al Hashemi, a critic of Al Maliki's alleged sectarian bias, said members of his Iraqi Islamic Party, part of the Sunni political bloc that quit the government, would hold meetings with leaders from regional Kurdish parties today before the summit, which will be held later this week.
The summit had been in question until a last-minute push from US Ambassador Ryan Crocker who called on Al Hashemi. Sunni leaders and some Arab countries have reportedly accused Al Maliki of sectarian bias and harbouring close ties with Iran.
Labels: emergency political summit, Iraq, Jalal Talabani, Nouri Al-Maliki, politics, Ryan Crocker, Tariq Al Hashemi
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Talabani optimistic that political parties can agree on developing national unity govt
Politics
(RFE/RL) - Iraqi President Jalal Talabani told reporters at an August 5 press briefing in Baghdad that he is optimistic that Iraq's fractious political parties can reach agreement on developing the national-unity government, RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq reported the same day. He said that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has agreed with Talabani and Vice President Adil Abd al-Mahdi to work according to four previously agreed-upon principles: strengthening and developing the national-unity government; adhering to the previously agreed-upon political program and implementing outstanding provisions; constitutional reform, including a redistribution of executive power between the prime ministry and the Presidency Council; and studying the Iraq Accordance Front's demands and committing to meeting those demands deemed legitimate.
Talabani also discussed Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's announcement that he refused to accept the resignations of the Accordance Front's ministers in his cabinet. Talabani said the Presidency Council hopes the front's cabinet members will reconsider their boycott and return to work. For his part, al-Maliki discussed his conversation with U.S. President George W. Bush, telling reporters that Bush also called Talabani and Abd al-Mahdi because he recognized Iraq's executive branch was in dire need of consultation, communication, and integration. Abd al-Mahdi also attended the press briefing.
Sunni Arab Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi told Al-Sharqiyah television in an August 4 interview that he conveyed the Sunni Arab position to President Bush during a telephone call the same day. He said Bush stressed the need for collective leadership in Iraq. "For my part, I have reassured the U.S. president that the Accordance Front has withdrawn from Nuri al-Maliki's government but it has not withdrawn from the political process, and that it will remain active in the interest of Iraq from its position at the Presidency Council and the positions of its representatives at the Council of Representatives," al-Hashimi said.
Labels: Adil Abdul Mahdi, Council of Representatives, George Bush, Iraqi Accordance Front, Jalal Talabani, national unity, Presidency Council, Tariq Al Hashemi
Friday, August 03, 2007
Gates pessimistic about Iraq's political progress
Politics
(McClatchy newspapers) - Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, returning from a four-day trip to the Middle East, offered a pessimistic view of Iraq's political progress Thursday, saying he thought that the United States had underestimated the level of distrust between the Shiite Muslim-led government and other ethnic groups.
"I just think in some ways we probably all underestimated the depth of the mistrust and how difficult it would be for these guys to come together on legislation, which, let's face it, is not just some kind of secondary thing," Gates said aboard his plane en route to Washington.
"The kinds of legislation they're talking about establish the framework of Iraq for the future, so it's almost like our constitutional convention. . . . And the difficulty in coming to grips with those we may all have underestimated six or eight months ago," when the Bush administration began implementing its policy of a U.S. troop buildup. Gates' assessment was the frankest by an administration official since the troop buildup began, and it came in the midst of heated debate in Washington about what the U.S. should do in Iraq in the face of an Iraqi government that hasn't met the benchmarks that Congress established in May.
While Gates was in the region, six Sunni Muslim ministers resigned from the Iraqi Cabinet, saying that Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, a Shiite, has done nothing to meet their demands, including disbanding Shiite militias. Gates called the resignations "discouraging." The bad news continued Thursday, as Sunni Vice President Tariq al Hashemi, the only Iraqi Accordance Front member who remains in Maliki's government, told McClatchy Newspapers that he also is on the verge of resigning.
Hashemi said he'd told U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Wednesday that the Iraqi government needed a "political shock" to stop it from continuing to marginalize the Sunnis. He said that without a change, Crocker and Army Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. military commander in Iraq, would be forced to issue a negative report on Iraq to Congress in September.
"We need these major political moves to tell everybody that what is happening is in no way tolerable," Hashemi said. "Nobody on earth or in Iraq is happy with the performance of the government."
Gates spoke at the end of a rare joint Middle East tour with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, during which both warned of the growing regional threat from Shiite Iran, urged Sunni Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia to throw their support behind the Maliki government and promised U.S. support for Israel and the Palestinians in establishing a Palestinian state.
Iraq's Sunni Arab neighbors expressed strong fears about the aftermath should U.S. troops pull out, but were reluctant to support the Maliki government, which Sunni politicians in Iraq accuse of turning a blind eye to Shiite militias' attacks on Sunnis.
"I just think in some ways we probably all underestimated the depth of the mistrust and how difficult it would be for these guys to come together on legislation, which, let's face it, is not just some kind of secondary thing," Gates said aboard his plane en route to Washington.
"The kinds of legislation they're talking about establish the framework of Iraq for the future, so it's almost like our constitutional convention. . . . And the difficulty in coming to grips with those we may all have underestimated six or eight months ago," when the Bush administration began implementing its policy of a U.S. troop buildup. Gates' assessment was the frankest by an administration official since the troop buildup began, and it came in the midst of heated debate in Washington about what the U.S. should do in Iraq in the face of an Iraqi government that hasn't met the benchmarks that Congress established in May.
While Gates was in the region, six Sunni Muslim ministers resigned from the Iraqi Cabinet, saying that Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, a Shiite, has done nothing to meet their demands, including disbanding Shiite militias. Gates called the resignations "discouraging." The bad news continued Thursday, as Sunni Vice President Tariq al Hashemi, the only Iraqi Accordance Front member who remains in Maliki's government, told McClatchy Newspapers that he also is on the verge of resigning.
Hashemi said he'd told U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Wednesday that the Iraqi government needed a "political shock" to stop it from continuing to marginalize the Sunnis. He said that without a change, Crocker and Army Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. military commander in Iraq, would be forced to issue a negative report on Iraq to Congress in September.
"We need these major political moves to tell everybody that what is happening is in no way tolerable," Hashemi said. "Nobody on earth or in Iraq is happy with the performance of the government."
Gates spoke at the end of a rare joint Middle East tour with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, during which both warned of the growing regional threat from Shiite Iran, urged Sunni Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia to throw their support behind the Maliki government and promised U.S. support for Israel and the Palestinians in establishing a Palestinian state.
Iraq's Sunni Arab neighbors expressed strong fears about the aftermath should U.S. troops pull out, but were reluctant to support the Maliki government, which Sunni politicians in Iraq accuse of turning a blind eye to Shiite militias' attacks on Sunnis.
Labels: Condoleezza Rice, Robert Gates, Tariq Al Hashemi
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Top Leaders Will Meet To Discuss How They Will End Iraq’s Crisis
Politics
(Bayyna Al Jadidah Newspaper) - 25 JUL - Five of Iraq’s “top” (senior) politicians will hold a meeting this week in order to discuss “ending the political crisis” in Iraq. The participants of this meeting will include: President Jalal Talabani, Vice President Tariq Al Hashimi, Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki, Kurdistan’s Regional President Massoud Barzani, and one of Sayid Abd Al Aziz Al Hakim’s “assistants”.
A government official said: this high-level conference will witness many meetings, this conference may begin on Friday. It is expected that the leaders will discuss many issues, such as how to reach agreements about amending the Constitution and how to resolve the Kirkuk issue.
Kirkuk is located in northern Iraq; and, therefore the Kurds want it to become part of the Kurdistan region. However, since it is also one of Iraq’s most “oil rich” areas this issue is strongly disputed by all the other Iraqi groups.
A government official said: this high-level conference will witness many meetings, this conference may begin on Friday. It is expected that the leaders will discuss many issues, such as how to reach agreements about amending the Constitution and how to resolve the Kirkuk issue.
Kirkuk is located in northern Iraq; and, therefore the Kurds want it to become part of the Kurdistan region. However, since it is also one of Iraq’s most “oil rich” areas this issue is strongly disputed by all the other Iraqi groups.
Labels: Article 140, Iraqi constitution, Jalal Talabani, Kirkuk, Massoud Barzani, Nouri Al-Maliki, politics, Tariq Al Hashemi
Monday, July 02, 2007
Sunni govt officials leave Baghdad for Kurdistan
Politics, Security
(Gulf News) - In a striking development, some top Sunni officials in the Iraqi government and parliament have decided to transfer their families to the more secure Kurdish region, Sunni politicians said. Salman Al Jabouri, a leading figure in Ahl Al Iraq convention (People of Iraq convention), Karkh section in Baghdad, told Gulf News: "Militias might kidnap Sunni officials' sons and murder them. Besides, Al Qaida has become a serious threat to the families, ... the Accord Front do not want their families to dwell inside the American fortified International Zone [formerly the Green Zone]."
Information indicates that the families of Vice-President Tariq Al Hashemi, Deputy Prime Minister Salam Al Zubai, and the suspended head of the Iraqi Parliament Mahmoud Al Mashadani, will move to the Kurdish regions, especially to Arbil, where leaders promised special protection and support. The escalation of sectarian violence in Baghdad led Sunni leaders to transfer their families to Kurdish region, a step that might indicate a worsening of security situation in future, said Sunni sources.
Faris, an official bodyguard for Sunni Accord Front members, told Gulf News: "There were written threats sent to Sunni officials, claiming to kill their family members if they do not withdraw from the whole political process .... Besides the possibility of securing their families' safety in Baghdad became almost impossible. ... their sons ... go to schools and universities while their wives visit relatives, that is the reason we need a large number of bodyguards."
According to Iraqi sources, who asked not to be named, some Arab countries have offered to host families of the Sunni officials, but they preferred the Kurd region mainly because most Sunni leaders admire the Kurdish position characterised by moderation concerning de-Baathification and dissolution of the Iraqi army.
Zuhair Al Dulaimi, a history professor, told Gulf News: "An important reason forcing Sunnis to flee Baghdad is that assassination campaigns have turned into massacres, claiming the lives of 20 to 50 citizens per day." Sunni political groups estimated that 200,000 Iraqis have left for Jordan, Syria and Egypt among other countries, and approximately out of 190,000 Sunnis who left, 150,000 are from Baghdad alone.
Information indicates that the families of Vice-President Tariq Al Hashemi, Deputy Prime Minister Salam Al Zubai, and the suspended head of the Iraqi Parliament Mahmoud Al Mashadani, will move to the Kurdish regions, especially to Arbil, where leaders promised special protection and support. The escalation of sectarian violence in Baghdad led Sunni leaders to transfer their families to Kurdish region, a step that might indicate a worsening of security situation in future, said Sunni sources.
Faris, an official bodyguard for Sunni Accord Front members, told Gulf News: "There were written threats sent to Sunni officials, claiming to kill their family members if they do not withdraw from the whole political process .... Besides the possibility of securing their families' safety in Baghdad became almost impossible. ... their sons ... go to schools and universities while their wives visit relatives, that is the reason we need a large number of bodyguards."
According to Iraqi sources, who asked not to be named, some Arab countries have offered to host families of the Sunni officials, but they preferred the Kurd region mainly because most Sunni leaders admire the Kurdish position characterised by moderation concerning de-Baathification and dissolution of the Iraqi army.
Zuhair Al Dulaimi, a history professor, told Gulf News: "An important reason forcing Sunnis to flee Baghdad is that assassination campaigns have turned into massacres, claiming the lives of 20 to 50 citizens per day." Sunni political groups estimated that 200,000 Iraqis have left for Jordan, Syria and Egypt among other countries, and approximately out of 190,000 Sunnis who left, 150,000 are from Baghdad alone.
Labels: Al Qaeda, Green Zone, International Zone, Iraqi Accord Front, Kurdistan, Mahmoud Al Mashahdani, relocation, Salam Al Zubai, Sunni officials, Tariq Al Hashemi
