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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Allawi in negotiations with Baathist supporters |
| 2004-12-21 |
| Iyad Allawi yesterday said he had held meetings with supporters of Saddam Hussein's former regime now backing a violent insurgency against his interim government. Iraq's prime minister also said that coalition forces' successful assault on the rebel stronghold of Falluja had separated Sunni former supporters of Mr Hussein's regime from "terrorists" such as Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the al-Qaeda operative, who had formerly acted together to attack his government and the coalition. "We are seeing a line of division between insurgents and terrorists," Mr Allawi said yesterday. "This is the distinction we have to make," he added, noting that his government was trying to "weaken" links between the two groups. While declining to say how many meetings he had held, Mr Allawi said he had held "a lot of them", including with groups that had now dropped their claims against the new government. In Jordan last month, Iraq's leader met Sunni tribal figures and other Iraqis to encourage members of the minority, which dominated Iraq's former regime, to participate in January 30's elections. At the time, he ruled out contacts with insurgent leaders or former members of Mr Hussein's regime. But Mr Allawi yesterday sounded a conciliatory note on the Ba'athists, whose exclusion from key military and other positions in the new Iraq have been identified as a leading source of the insurgency. He distinguished between former Ba'athists who had committed crimes and those who "had to" join the party. "What we have to do is bring those who committed these crimes to justice," he said. "The rest should be here in society serving as productive citizens." A special tribunal set up to prosecute alleged crimes against humanity under Mr Hussein took testimony last weekend from two top Ba'athist officials, including Ali Hassan al-Majid, a cousin of the former dictator nicknamed "Chemical Ali". The two are the first of 12 "high- value detainees" from the former regime known to have been questioned in preparation for a future war-crimes trial. Mr Allawi, who last week announced his candidacy for the election, is seeking to project the image of a tough leader to win votes from Iraqis fearful of sectarian tensions and insurgent violence. But he also wants to win votes from Sunnis, and has named tribal and others from the group on his ticket. Mr Allawi yesterday repeated criticisms of the former US-led provisional authority's decision to take a hard line on low-ranking former Ba'athists. At the same time, he warned of his resolve to fight "terrorists". "Anybody who is willing to respect the rule of law, we respect them," he said. "Anyone who does not respect the rule of law, we will fight them, and we will break their backs." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #6 Iyad Allawi yesterday said he had held meetings with supporters of Saddam Hussein’s former regime now backing a violent insurgency against his interim government. |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2004-12-21 5:25:29 PM |
| #5 ..between former Ba’athists who had committed crimes and those who "had to" join the party. Those that "had to" should be among the first to be receptive to the first chance at joining a peaceful political process then, since the implication is that they joined out of necessity, and not because Baathism appealed to them. Waiting for additional offers of amnesty tells me that these types are only opportunists, and aren't people worthy of investing any substantial amount of trust in. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-12-21 5:09:46 PM |
| #4 He distinguished between former Ba’athists who had committed crimes and those who "had to" join the party. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-12-21 4:54:24 PM |
| #3 Big mistake and the Achilles Heel to success in the Iraq and the ME in general. So, Allawi is sending the message across the globe that violent resistance is a legitimate form of political engagement and that people who carry it out are worthy of meeting with the prime minister several months after they've sawed off contractors' heads and executed Iraqi enlistees. Israel and the US have been working so hard to communicate that terrorism is not legitimate political engagement. This will come back and haunt Iraq. Let's say Allawi works it out with them, lets them in, encourages their participation, and all stays calm for a while. Iraq has their elections, we reduce our forces, the rest of the coalition dissolves away, millions and millions of rebuilding and investment take place--and the insurgents are sitting in the perfect position to sabotage it all-they still have their connections and could bomb all that progress and trust to smithereens in a few seconds flat. Minister Allawi-you've been listening a little too closely to your Euro Paleo advocates. It's a mistake-don't do this. |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2004-12-21 4:49:53 PM |
| #2 It should be fairly clear by now, who is who in terms of those willing to participate and those who should be condemned. Seems to me that any offer to negotiate should only be made once. Those that try to hedge their bets by holding out to see how things turn out and wait for a second or third offer of "amnesty" aren't likely to be people that can be trusted. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-12-21 4:29:00 PM |
| #1 But Mr Allawi yesterday sounded a conciliatory note on the Ba’athists, whose exclusion from key military and other positions in the new Iraq have been identified as a leading source of the insurgency. He distinguished between former Ba’athists who had committed crimes and those who "had to" join the party. It's sad, but it seems to me that they need to imprison or execute those who committed crimes or cannot participate in the new govnt. It should be fairly clear by now, who is who in terms of those willing to participate and those who should be condemned. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-12-21 8:25:10 AM |