Posted on 03/24/2006 3:53:30 PM PST by Aussie Dasher
IRAQ does not face the danger of civil war as Iraqis move towards a national unity government and prepare to take on more responsibility for their country, the chairman of the US joints of staff, Peter Pace, said today.
"I do not think a civil war will erupt in Iraq. What is important here are the decisions of the Iraqi people," Mr Pace, who was in Turkey to attend a conference on global terrorism, told the NTV news channel with voice-over translation into Turkish.
The general pointed out that Iraqi leaders had called for calm and moderation since the bombing last month of a Shiite shrine north of Baghdad, which triggered reprisals against Sunnis and unleashed the worst sectarian violence in years.
"I think the Iraqi people have understood that they are at a historic turning point. The elected leaders are working to form a unity government that will include Shiites, Sunnis, Kurds, Iraqis," Mr Pace said.
"This will be to the benefit of Iraqis. I foresee a very healthy 2006. They (Iraqis) will take on more responsibility" for their country, he added.
Hundreds of people were killed in violence following the bombing of the shrine, with many commentators saying Iraq was in a state of civil war.
One was former Iraqi prime minister Iyad Allawi, who told the BBC on Sunday that with an average of 50 to 60 Iraqis being killed each day, "if this is not civil war, then God knows what civil war is."
Amid the bloodshed, political parties are bogged down in talks some three months after the elections, amid disputes over the choice of prime minister and the allocation of ministries.
Poor headline writing. The quote is "I do not think a civil war will erupt in Iraq". That's not at all the same thing as saying there is no risk of such an event.
You expect headlines to be accurate?
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