Posted on 04/27/2013 12:00:30 PM PDT by haffast
Iraq's prime minister has warned that a plague of sectarianism is threatening Arab nations, after the most widespread violence there since US troops left.
Nouri Maliki said sectarian conflict had returned to Iraq "because it began in another place in this region" - an apparent reference to Syria.
The violence has left some 170 people dead across the country since Tuesday.
On Saturday, at least five anti-al-Qaeda Sunni militiamen and three security forces personnel were killed.
Police said the first attack saw gunmen open fire on a checkpoint near the city of Tikrit manned by members of the local Awakening Council.
Awakening Councils, which were set up by Iraq's Sunnis to combat insurgents linked to al-Qaeda, have been seen as a key factor in reducing violence across the country since 2006.
In Saturday's second attack, three army intelligence personnel were stopped by gunmen while travelling in a civilian vehicle near an anti-government protest camp in the city of Ramadi, police said.
A gunfight soon erupted, in which the soldiers were killed.
snip
The clashes in several towns and cities were sparked by an army raid on an anti-government protest camp near the northern town of Hawija on Tuesday that left 50 people dead.
The protesters were calling for the resignation of Mr Maliki, a Shia, and denouncing the authorities for allegedly targeting the Sunni community.
Although the violence is less deadly than that seen during the heights of the insurgency in 2006 and 2007, it is the most widespread since the US military withdrawal in 2011.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
Iraq's foreign policy pressures
11 October 2012 Last updated at 05:04 ET
By Rami Ruhayem BBC News, Baghdad
"And on Tuesday, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki signed a deal to purchase $4.2bn (£2.6bn) worth of weapons from Russia."
"On the surface, one act seems in defiance of Iran, and the other in defiance of the United States."
"Iraq is buckling under pressure from all directions. The prospect of chaos in Syria has left the government panicking, and each of its closest allies - Tehran and Washington - is pulling Baghdad in its own direction. "
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19908094
Iraq attacks 'aimed at exploiting fragility'
23 July 2012 Last updated at 08:11 ET
"The motive appears to be to keep Iraq unstable and insecure, undermining the government led by the Shia Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki."
"There were many warnings at the time that Iraqi security forces would be unable to stop a resurgence of violence after the Americans left."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18951290
Iraq's clash of old and new: Oil pipelines in Babylon
By Rami Ruhayem BBC News, Hilla, Iraq
17 April 2012 Last updated at 19:31 ET
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17702153
Gosh, this has worked out so well for Iraq since we have left...
Freegards
LEX
Islam is a plague.
I wish all kinds of plagues on them.
“Iraq’s prime minister has warned that a plague of sectarianism is threatening Arab nations...”
It’s already too late for any such warning here in the US.
Only bloody dictators and kleptocrat dictators can rule Muslim nations. They are too crazy from the sun for anything civilized. These meals on wheels wars we have will never make a Muslim nation into a democracy. They prefer dictators and authoritarianism
CC
Pot-kettle ping — he’s a puppet of Iran. Thanks haffast. Related:
Iraq pulls licenses of Al-Jazeera, other channels
news.yahoo.com | 4/28/13 | SINAN SALAHEDDIN/ ap
Posted on 04/28/2013 9:10:40 AM PDT by ColdOne
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3013353/posts
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