Free Republic

In a monumental first meeting, Iraqi diplomats and exiles—and the U.S. military—discuss democracy in the ancient city of Ur Iraqi exile Entifada Qanbar is a pretty tough guy. He fought in the Iran-Iraq War for five years. He was arrested by Saddam Hussein’s abusive secret police. Eleven of his close friends were executed. He escaped Iraq in 1990 and hadn’t been back—until yesterday. TUESDAY AFTERNOON, when we landed at Tallil Air Base in Iraq, the 44-year-old couldn’t keep from crying. “It’s a great thing. A dream that came through,” he said. “This is something I dedicated all my life for.”...

TALLIL AIRBASE, Iraq (Reuters) - First talks on the future of Iraq were attended on Tuesday by Iraqi political and religious leaders, as well as U.S. and British officials. A report published on the Web site of the U.S. Central Command war headquarters in Qatar said a 13-point statement had been released at the end of the meeting. It was not immediately clear whether the meeting had formally adopted the statement, which follows: 1. Iraq must be democratic. 2. The future government of Iraq should not be based on communal identity. 3. A future government should be organized as...