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Iraq Sunni bloc weighs quitting government
Iraqs main Sunni bloc is considering quitting the Shiite-led government because it believes the concerns of Sunnis are not being addressed, members of the bloc including the vice president said on Tuesday. Some members of the Sunni Accordance Front have been urging the bloc for several months to pull out of Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Malikis cabinet, partly over accusations that reconciliation with minority Sunni Arabs has moved too slowly. But frustration has grown in recent weeks, members said. We are serious in withdrawing if nothing new happens with progress in the political process, Adnan al-Dulaimi, head of the Sunni bloc, told Reuters from Amman where he was on a visit. Reconciliation the government speaks of is only for conferences and speeches. No results can be seen on the ground. Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, a senior member of the bloc, told Reuters the Front would make its position known soon. We are very serious in taking a real unified stance over a possible withdrawal, said Hashemi, who discussed the issue with US President George W Bush in a telephone call on Sunday. Washington has set Iraqs government benchmarks that it wants to see progress on by September, and which US officials believe will be crucial to bringing Sunni Arabs, the backbone of the insurgency, more firmly into the political process. It wants parliament to delay a two-month summer recess due to start in July to pass laws on sharing Iraqs oil wealth, easing a ban on former members of Saddam Husseins Baath party holding office, and paving the way for provincial elections. Posted by: Fred 2007-05-02 |
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