.Iraq Seeks Saudi Backing on Reconciliation
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is going to neighboring Saudi Arabia to seek support for his national reconciliation initiative from leaders of the influential oil-rich kingdom, a government official said Friday.
Five American soldiers, meanwhile, were under investigation for allegedly raping a young woman south of Baghdad, then killing her and three family members, a U.S. military official told The Associated Press, adding that the soldiers allegedly burned the body of the woman.
Al-Maliki, a member of Iraq's Shiite majority, plans to discuss his program for bridging the Shiite-Sunni divide in Iraq with Saudi leaders Saturday, said the Iraqi official, who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Saudi Arabia is predominantly Sunni Muslim, as are most Arab states, and Iraqi leaders hope outside support for the reconciliation initiative will help draw in Iraq's disgruntled Sunni minority, which is the backbone of the insurgency.
Al-Maliki's plan includes an amnesty for fighters, and the prime minister's office says it was indirectly contacted this week by 11 insurgent groups, some of which insisted that Saudi Arabia be an observer in future peace talks.
The prime minister also will visit Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates on Saturday and will be accompanied by several ministers, said Shiite lawmaker Hassan al-Suneid, a member of al-Maliki's Dawa party.
Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Friday that he rejected the initiative, which does not set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign troops.
``We demand the occupation forces to leave the country or at least a timetable should be set for their withdrawal,'' al-Sadr said.
Animosities between Sunnis and Shiites have become a growing element of the country's bloodshed.
Officials said Friday that Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition forces clashed with gunmen northeast of Baghdad after armed Shiite Muslims attacked a convoy of Sunni Arab villagers in retaliation for a bicycle bomb attack.
The Sunnis were attacked Thursday as they were moving out of the religiously mixed village of Daliqiya after being threatened by Shiite residents accusing them of being behind the bicycle bombing in nearby Baqouba that killed at least 25 people Monday, police said.
Iraqi police tried to intervene, but snipers killed the head of the force and his two bodyguards, authorities said. U.S. and Iraqi troops, backed by air support, then engaged in a gunbattle that killed three fighters and wounded three, the U.S. military said, adding that four suspects were detained.
Abdullah al-Dulaimi, a Sunni villager in Daliqiya, said Shiite militiamen started targeting Sunni homes with bombs and gunfire after the bicycle blast, prompting some families to flee.
``I decided to stay,'' he said. ``I chose to defend my properties.''
Only a few police patrols remained in the village Friday, but ``the situation is still tense,'' al-Dulaimi said.
The fighting reflected a rise in sectarian violence in the Sunni-dominated Diyala province, which surrounds Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad.
In nearby Muqdadiyah, a rocket-propelled grenade hit a Shiite mosque Friday, and 30 minutes later, gunmen in black uniforms often worn by Shiite militias attacked a Sunni mosque, police said.
Gunmen in two cars also killed Sunni Sheik Hatam Mitaab al-Khazraji after he finished Friday prayers in Abu Saida, northwest of Baqouba, police said.
The U.S. military has staged several raids in the area since al-Qaida in Iraq's leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was killed there earlier this month. The military said Thursday it had gained an advantage in the fight against the terror network.
Osama bin Laden purportedly paid tribute to al-Zarqawi in a new audio message Friday, saying the slain Jordanian militant had been under orders to kill Iraqis who supported U.S. forces in the country. In the 19-minute message, bin Laden also demanded that President Bush hand over al-Zarqawi's body to his family and vowed more attacks against the United States.
It was the fourth audio message purportedly put out this year by bin Laden. The voice in the latest message - released on an Islamic Web forum where militants often post messages - resembled that on previous recordings attributed to bin Laden, but the authenticity of the tape could not be immediately confirmed.
In Beiji, a U.S. military official close to the rape investigation said at least one soldier had confessed and been arrested. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said at least four other soldiers had their weapons taken away and were confined to base.
The U.S. command announced only that a criminal investigation was being conducted into the reported slaying of a family of four, but gave no details.
The official who discussed the case said the suspects were members of the 502nd Infantry Regiment, the same unit that had two men slain when they were kidnapped this month at a checkpoint. But the official said the March killings appeared unrelated to that incident.
A Marine was killed Friday in fighting in the volatile Anbar province west of Baghdad, while three U.S. soldiers died in separate attacks Thursday elsewhere in Iraq, the military said.
The deaths raised to at least 2,533 members of the U.S. military who have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
Guardian
Five American soldiers, meanwhile, were under investigation for allegedly raping a young woman south of Baghdad, then killing her and three family members, a U.S. military official told The Associated Press, adding that the soldiers allegedly burned the body of the woman.
Al-Maliki, a member of Iraq's Shiite majority, plans to discuss his program for bridging the Shiite-Sunni divide in Iraq with Saudi leaders Saturday, said the Iraqi official, who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Saudi Arabia is predominantly Sunni Muslim, as are most Arab states, and Iraqi leaders hope outside support for the reconciliation initiative will help draw in Iraq's disgruntled Sunni minority, which is the backbone of the insurgency.
Al-Maliki's plan includes an amnesty for fighters, and the prime minister's office says it was indirectly contacted this week by 11 insurgent groups, some of which insisted that Saudi Arabia be an observer in future peace talks.
The prime minister also will visit Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates on Saturday and will be accompanied by several ministers, said Shiite lawmaker Hassan al-Suneid, a member of al-Maliki's Dawa party.
Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Friday that he rejected the initiative, which does not set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign troops.
``We demand the occupation forces to leave the country or at least a timetable should be set for their withdrawal,'' al-Sadr said.
Animosities between Sunnis and Shiites have become a growing element of the country's bloodshed.
Officials said Friday that Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition forces clashed with gunmen northeast of Baghdad after armed Shiite Muslims attacked a convoy of Sunni Arab villagers in retaliation for a bicycle bomb attack.
The Sunnis were attacked Thursday as they were moving out of the religiously mixed village of Daliqiya after being threatened by Shiite residents accusing them of being behind the bicycle bombing in nearby Baqouba that killed at least 25 people Monday, police said.
Iraqi police tried to intervene, but snipers killed the head of the force and his two bodyguards, authorities said. U.S. and Iraqi troops, backed by air support, then engaged in a gunbattle that killed three fighters and wounded three, the U.S. military said, adding that four suspects were detained.
Abdullah al-Dulaimi, a Sunni villager in Daliqiya, said Shiite militiamen started targeting Sunni homes with bombs and gunfire after the bicycle blast, prompting some families to flee.
``I decided to stay,'' he said. ``I chose to defend my properties.''
Only a few police patrols remained in the village Friday, but ``the situation is still tense,'' al-Dulaimi said.
The fighting reflected a rise in sectarian violence in the Sunni-dominated Diyala province, which surrounds Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad.
In nearby Muqdadiyah, a rocket-propelled grenade hit a Shiite mosque Friday, and 30 minutes later, gunmen in black uniforms often worn by Shiite militias attacked a Sunni mosque, police said.
Gunmen in two cars also killed Sunni Sheik Hatam Mitaab al-Khazraji after he finished Friday prayers in Abu Saida, northwest of Baqouba, police said.
The U.S. military has staged several raids in the area since al-Qaida in Iraq's leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, was killed there earlier this month. The military said Thursday it had gained an advantage in the fight against the terror network.
Osama bin Laden purportedly paid tribute to al-Zarqawi in a new audio message Friday, saying the slain Jordanian militant had been under orders to kill Iraqis who supported U.S. forces in the country. In the 19-minute message, bin Laden also demanded that President Bush hand over al-Zarqawi's body to his family and vowed more attacks against the United States.
It was the fourth audio message purportedly put out this year by bin Laden. The voice in the latest message - released on an Islamic Web forum where militants often post messages - resembled that on previous recordings attributed to bin Laden, but the authenticity of the tape could not be immediately confirmed.
In Beiji, a U.S. military official close to the rape investigation said at least one soldier had confessed and been arrested. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said at least four other soldiers had their weapons taken away and were confined to base.
The U.S. command announced only that a criminal investigation was being conducted into the reported slaying of a family of four, but gave no details.
The official who discussed the case said the suspects were members of the 502nd Infantry Regiment, the same unit that had two men slain when they were kidnapped this month at a checkpoint. But the official said the March killings appeared unrelated to that incident.
A Marine was killed Friday in fighting in the volatile Anbar province west of Baghdad, while three U.S. soldiers died in separate attacks Thursday elsewhere in Iraq, the military said.
The deaths raised to at least 2,533 members of the U.S. military who have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
Guardian
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