.Sunnis ink pact to work with U.S. forces in Iraq
HAWIJA, Iraq - Nearly 6,000 Sunni Arab residents joined a security pact with American forces yesterday in what U.S. officers described as a critical step in plugging the remaining escape routes for extremists flushed from former strongholds.
But the ability of extremists to strike near Baghdad continues. A woman wearing an explosives-rigged belt blew herself up Tuesday near an American patrol in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of the capital, the military announced. The blast - a rare attack by a female suicide bomber - wounded seven U.S. troops and five Iraqis.
Iraqi lawmakers, meanwhile, briefly boycotted the start of a legislative session, demanding that U.S. forces ease checkpoint searches as they try to enter the fortified Green Zone, where the parliament building is located.
The new Sunni alliance - called the single largest volunteer mobilization since the war began - covers the "last gateway" for groups including al-Qaida in Iraq that are seeking new havens in northern Iraq, U.S. military officials said.
U.S. commanders have tried to build a ring around insurgents who fled military offensives launched earlier this year in western Anbar province and later in and around Baghdad. In many places, the U.S.-led battles were given key help from tribal militias - mainly Sunnis - that had turned against al-Qaida and other groups.
Extremists have sought new footholds in northern areas once loyal to Saddam Hussein's Baath party as the U.S.-led gains have increased in central regions.
The ceremony to pledge the 6,000 new fighters was presided over by a dozen robed sheiks, who signed the contract on behalf of tribesmen at a small U.S. outpost in north-central Iraq. For about $275 a month - nearly the salary of a typical Iraqi policeman - the tribesmen will man about 200 security checkpoints beginning Dec. 7, supplementing hundreds of Iraqi forces already in the area.
About 77,000 Iraqis nationwide, mostly Sunnis, have broken with the insurgents and joined U.S.-backed self-defense groups. Those groups have played a major role in the lull in violence: 648 Iraqi civilians have been killed or found dead so far this month, according to Associated Press figures. This compares with 2,155 in May as the so-called "surge" of nearly 30,000 additional American troops gained momentum.
U.S. troop deaths in Iraq also have dropped sharply, with 34 deaths so far this month compared to 38 in October. In June, 101 U.S. soldiers died in Iraq.
Village mayors and others who signed yesterday's agreement say about 200 militants have sought refuge in the area, about 30 miles southwest of Kirkuk on the edge of northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.
Newsday
But the ability of extremists to strike near Baghdad continues. A woman wearing an explosives-rigged belt blew herself up Tuesday near an American patrol in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of the capital, the military announced. The blast - a rare attack by a female suicide bomber - wounded seven U.S. troops and five Iraqis.
Iraqi lawmakers, meanwhile, briefly boycotted the start of a legislative session, demanding that U.S. forces ease checkpoint searches as they try to enter the fortified Green Zone, where the parliament building is located.
The new Sunni alliance - called the single largest volunteer mobilization since the war began - covers the "last gateway" for groups including al-Qaida in Iraq that are seeking new havens in northern Iraq, U.S. military officials said.
U.S. commanders have tried to build a ring around insurgents who fled military offensives launched earlier this year in western Anbar province and later in and around Baghdad. In many places, the U.S.-led battles were given key help from tribal militias - mainly Sunnis - that had turned against al-Qaida and other groups.
Extremists have sought new footholds in northern areas once loyal to Saddam Hussein's Baath party as the U.S.-led gains have increased in central regions.
The ceremony to pledge the 6,000 new fighters was presided over by a dozen robed sheiks, who signed the contract on behalf of tribesmen at a small U.S. outpost in north-central Iraq. For about $275 a month - nearly the salary of a typical Iraqi policeman - the tribesmen will man about 200 security checkpoints beginning Dec. 7, supplementing hundreds of Iraqi forces already in the area.
About 77,000 Iraqis nationwide, mostly Sunnis, have broken with the insurgents and joined U.S.-backed self-defense groups. Those groups have played a major role in the lull in violence: 648 Iraqi civilians have been killed or found dead so far this month, according to Associated Press figures. This compares with 2,155 in May as the so-called "surge" of nearly 30,000 additional American troops gained momentum.
U.S. troop deaths in Iraq also have dropped sharply, with 34 deaths so far this month compared to 38 in October. In June, 101 U.S. soldiers died in Iraq.
Village mayors and others who signed yesterday's agreement say about 200 militants have sought refuge in the area, about 30 miles southwest of Kirkuk on the edge of northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.
Newsday
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