Iraq parties agree on talks agenda

aljazeera.net/ ^ | SUNDAY, AUGUST 19, 2007 13:29 MECCA TIME, 10:29 GMT | Al Jazeera and agencies

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Iraq parties agree on talks agenda

Al-Maliki, right, was in Tikrit on Friday canvassing the support of Sunni leaders [AFP]

Iraqi leaders have agreed on the agenda for a summit called by Nuri al-Maliki, the prime minister, in an effort to save his unity government, according to one of the state's vice-presidents.

"The breakthrough came on the second day of preparatory talks involving the country's most senior political leaders," Tareq al-Hashemi said on Sunday.

"We reached agreement on a number of issues. The most important is the agenda for the summit and who will attend the meeting," a statement said.

On Sunday, the leaders held a fresh round of talks to find a political settlement.

New alliance

 

The development came  after the country's top Shia and Kurdish leaders formed a new political alliance on Thursday, but without Sunni leaders.

 

The talks are being attended by Nuri al-Maliki, the prime minister who is Shia; Jalal Talabani, the president who is a Kurd; Tareq al-Hashemi, a vice-president who is Sunni; Adel Abdel Mahdi, a vice-president who is Shia; and Massoud Barzani, president of the northern Kurdish region.

 

The talks began on Saturday, the official from Talabani's office said.

 

"Yesterday the three-member presidency, the prime minister and Mr Massoud Barzani held a meeting to look into ways of solving outstanding issues and to decide on the summit," he said.

 

The official described the weekend talks as "preparatory."

 

Sunni boycott

 

The Sunni faction left al-Maliki's Shia-dominated government on August 1, but he has said that the door remains open for their return.

 

On Thursday, Talabani and al-Maliki announced the formation of an alliance grouping the Shia Dawa party and Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council and the Kurdish factions of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and Kurdish Democratic Party (PDK).

 

Al-Hashemi has complained that al-Maliki
ignores his suggestions [AFP]

But the National Concord Front, the main Sunni Arab political bloc in the country's 275-member parliament, criticised the new tie-up as a "futile" exercise.

 

Speaking to Al Jazeera, al-Hashimi denied that Saturday's meeting discussed the issue of his party, the Iraqi Islamic party, joining the newly formed four-party Shia-Kurdish alliance.

"The four-party alliance will actually add nothing to the political process, as these four parties are already [taking part] in authority and had very old strategic alliances even before the fall of [Saddam Hussein's] regime," he said.

 

"I affirm, through Al Jazeera, that the Iraqi Islamic Party does not currently have the intention to join the four-party alliance.

 

Gradual troop cut

 

In another development, the New York Times reported on Saturday that George Bush, the US president, intended to announce in September plans for gradual troop reductions from Iraq - but at levels far short of those sought by his congressional critics.

 

One US administration official made it clear that the goal of the planned announcement was to counter public pressure for a more rapid reduction and to try to win support for a plan that could keep American involvement in Iraq on "a sustainable footing" at least through the end of the Bush presidency.

 

Meanwhile, in continued violence, at least 10 people were killed and 28 others injured on Sunday when mortar shells landed on a residential neighbourhood in east Baghdad, Iraqi police said.

 

Women and children were among the dead and a number of houses were damaged in the attack, police said.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the War Front:

Iraq Report: Sunni insurgents vs. al Qaeda in Diyala

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Al Qaeda in Iraq continues to face opposition from Sunni insurgent groups. In the Buhriz district in Diyala province, the 1920s Revolution Brigades assisted Iraqi police in fending off an attack of upwards of 60 al Qaeda fighters. Multinational Forces Iraq identified the Sunni insurgents as the "Baqubah Guardians," however IraqSlogger reported the al-Ishreen Revolution Brigades (1920s Revolution Brigades) engaged in the fight. Multinational Forces Iraq described the fighting, and notes the coordination between the insurgent group, the local police, and US attack helicopters:...............

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

EXCERPT:

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The degree to which Sunni insurgent groups have turned against al Qaeda and are working with US troops and Iraqi security forces is an underreported story in the war. Approximately 25,000 Sunni insurgents from groups such as the 1920s Revolution Brigades, the Jaysh Mohammed, and the Islamic Army of Iraq have turned against al Qaeda at the behest of their tribal leaders. "Tribe members and others who agree to support Iraq's government have to sign a pledge form and consent to biometric scans of their fingerprints and retinas so their data can be kept on file," USA Today reported on August 6. "They are also vetted by the Iraqi government."

The strategy of turning the tribes and insurgent groups has been successful in Anbar, and is being applied inside Baghdad, Diyala, Salahadin, Ninewa, and Babil province. This is reconciliation at the micro level. Al Qaeda is threatened by this development and is actively targeting members of groups that have turned on them.

[Sacajaweau]

Hey, they’re supposed to be on vacation...The Dem media told me so!! Again and again and again...

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Yes ,...my beeber was stunned when I saw this,.....LOL!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Interesting side not from the Fourth Rail:

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Six Revolutionary Guards killed in Iran helicopter crash

TEHRAN (AFP) - Six members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards were killed and five injured in a helicopter crash during an operation near the Iraqi border, state radio reported on Saturday.

"An armed forces' helicopter with 11 on board hit the mountains because of a storm while on a border manoeuvre near Piranshahr," a town around 10 kilometres (six miles) from the Iraqi border, the radio said.

"A funeral was held in Piranshahr today for the martyrs who were members of the Revolutionary Guards," it said of the Friday crash.

Iran's northwestern West Azerbaijan province, which borders Turkey and Iraq, is the scene of regular deadly clashes between Iranian security forces and Pejak and other militant Kurdish separatists linked to Turkey's outlawed PKK.

An official from the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) told an AFP correspondent in neighbouring Iraq that the helicopter had been shot down by an allied Kurdish Iranian group he described as the Hayat al-Hur (Free Life).

Speaking in the northern city of Sulaimaniyah on condition of anonymity, he also claimed the rebels had killed 15 members of Iran's security forces in ground clashes.

The claims could not be independently verified.

In February, 14 Iranian military personnel, including two Revolutionary Guards commanders, were killed in a helicopter crash during an operation against rebels close to the Turkish border.

The Iranian authorities said the crash was the result of bad weather but PKK-linked rebels claimed the helicopter had been shot down

Iran is bound by treaty with Turkey to fight the PKK. In return, Turkey has pledged to fight Iran's main armed opposition group, the Iraq-based People's Mujahedeen.

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* Iran August 18, 2007 An Iranian military helicopter went down near Piranshahr, a town around 6 miles from the Iraqi border. Six soldiers were killed. The military said it was due to mechanical failure, but the Mehr news agency said the Kurdish rebel group Pejak shot down the helo while fighting the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Iran needs to stop their attacks....from the archives:

The Photo that Should Make Amadinejad Lose Bladder Control

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That's a photo from 2004 of the flight line at Diego Garcia

[SunkenCiv]

The official described the weekend talks as "preparatory."

s/b predatory. Thanks Ernest.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Just found this at the Strata-Sphere:

Iranian Forces Enter Iraq

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American forces are tracking about 50 members of an elite Iranian force who have crossed the border into southern Iraq to train Shiite militia fighters, a top U.S. general said Sunday.

…

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, whose command includes the volatile southern rim of Baghdad and districts to the south, said his troops are tracking about 50 members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps in their area — the first detailed allegation that Iranians have been training fighters within Iraq’s borders.

“We know they’re here and we target them as well,” he said, citing intelligence reports as evidence of their presence.

He declined to be more specific and said no Iranian forces have been arrested in his territory.

“We’ve got about 50 of those,” he said, referring to the Iranian forces. “They go back and forth. There’s a porous border.”

This kind of incursion and exposure shows more desperation on the part of those hoping the US will falter in Iraq. The only reason to make this kind of reckless move is to stop huge reversals. The fact Iran is Persian and Iraq is Arab is not to be lost on the dynamics of these kinds of situations. With Iranian/Persian mortars raining down on Iraqi children (most iikely Arab) the region could easily turn against Iran. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq could decide Persians should not be killing Arab children. That would pretty much seal Iran’s fate. Both al-Qaeda and Iran are making serious mistakes, showing they are getting worried and reckless.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the CQ Blog:

August 18, 2007 -- Allawi On The Stump

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Ayad Allawi, the Prime Minister of Iraq during the transitional government period, calls his nation a "failing state" and puts most of the blame on his successor, Nouri al-Maliki. Allawi insists that the Iraqis need a multinational force in place to secure the country, along with better international cooperation, and underscores the need for firm American commitment over the next two years:

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

See #9 regarding Iranians involvement....

[Marine_Uncle]

Thanks for the ping and the add on links. Perhaps Maliki is getting worried things are falling apart. It is easy for those on the outside to criticizes their leadership. But when one looks back on how badly the Shia in general where treated by Saddam and the Sunni minority, one could see how difficult it is to attempt to integrate equal balance of rule in the central government.
Obviously as has been indicated many times over the past few years, the Shia have no intentions of giving up their hold, and that does not mean they across the board give their blessings on the Sunni genocide that has been taking place.
Why would one want to give the reign over to those that used to give the thumbs ups for torturing and killing one's family and friends.
The issue of uniting Iraq under one central government (which I support), is not going to be an easy task to complete. It just may not be possible, even in the long run.
But IMHO, I see nothing but problems with the tri-split-up model some have suggested including of course Senator Biden.
And surely most of, or all the neighboring Arab states, less Syria, would prefere to see one united Iraq emerge, where it has no desire to lord over the region, and acts as a buffer between the ME proper and the Persians.
The Persians and their ever present underwriters, the Russians will always have a desire to get their hands into as much of the ME in all facets as they can.
In that respect, I wonder just how close Maliki and many of his close associates favor direct intercourse with the Iranians. Is he just trying to set the stage where he gets promises from the Iranians they will not attempt overdue influences within the future Iraqi governments. Obviously if so, he is not wise.
Of course some at FR would say my comments are mute, for this is really the game plan, Iran to have a strong influence in Iraq, where the majority of Shia will permit it. And they just may have been right all along.
In haste, the UN, with the blessings of the US and Britain allowed the present voting system to be put in place. Shia will always come out at the top. Iraqi cannot even vote for a Sunni Iraqi patriot first type that would offer fair play to all. Things where set up for failure from the political viewpoint as jcm1969 had hollered about some time back.
The Coalition and the UN screwed the pouch big time concerning how the Iraqi system of government would be created. Now they must grovel over how to attempt to appear fair when there is probably little fairness in the reality.
The Jews and Christians and other minor religious sects are going to be totally driven out of Iraq, but all looks of things. Either that or perhaps the Sunni in say al Anbar may say they can all move there, and be under the local provincial protection. Bottom line is regardless how well our military conduct operations, things are going to remain rather muddy. I for one will continue to support the efforts being made by our military. They perform magnificantly. But anymore, I just don't see what I for one had preached coming to past in Iraq any time soon.
The Maliki government backed by all the key Shia parties will continue to shortchange the potential a better equiped government would have in uniting this country once the terrorist factions where totally driven out. With the ever increasing willingness for many of the Sunni to sign on to the governments wishes to end the insurgency, by whatever means is at hand, you would think key players on the Shia side would be on the sounding board for a unified Iraq to come into being. One where all can share in future blessings that can occure with good governance and the huge commercial potential from oil and gas. Perhaps that shall still come to past. Time will tell. And they surely are still in the infancy stages of self determined rule without a dictator calling the shots.