Iraq War news

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Bush defending Iraq policy

Bush defending Iraq policy: "

(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-03-14 08:53

U.S. President George W. Bush, launching a drive to counter growing American opposition to the Iraq war, vowed on Monday "we will not lose our nerve" and accused Iran of helping foment violence in Iraq.

U.S. President George W. Bush greets supporters after speaking about the U.S. military involvement in Iraq while at the Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre at the George Washington University in Washington, March 13, 2006. [Reuters]

Stung by low approval ratings dragged down by pessimism over Iraq, Bush delivered the first in a series of speeches to convince Americans he has a strategy for victory, days before the third anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Bush spoke amid sectarian strife in Iraq that has raised fears of civil war, denting U.S. hopes for a troop drawdown anytime soon. Bombings in a Baghdad Shi'ite slum killed 52 people on Sunday.

"They're hoping to shake our resolve and make us retreat," Bush told a policy group at George Washington University. "They're not going to succeed."

But Bush, whose public credibility has also been hurt by a series of second-term troubles and missteps, offered no new plan for winning the war.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll put Bush's job performance rating at 36 percent, a new low for the president in that survey and in line with other recent findings.

Bush's poll numbers are at the lowest point of his presidency, with up to two-thirds of Americans disapproving of his handling of Iraq, once among his strongest suits.

Bush insisted there had been progress training Iraqi forces to take over from the U.S. military and praised them for keeping things from spinning out of control after the February 22 bombing of a major Shi'ite mosque. But he acknowledged there was still plenty of work and "days of struggle" ahead.

Bush urged Iraq's leaders to "reach out across religious and sectarian lines" to form a unity government -- a process that has stalled amid the latest bloodshed.

Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy (news, bio, voting record) of Massachusetts, a critic of the Republican administration, said instead of leading a "public relations blitz" Bush should bring Iraq's factions together for a summit to avoid a slide into civil war.

HOMEMADE BOMBS

While blaming sectarian violence on the "enemies of freedom" in Iraq, Bush also pointed the finger at Iran, saying some of the homemade bombs wreaking havoc in Iraq had been traced to its eastern neighbor.

Locked in a test of wills with Iran over its nuclear ambitions, Bush said: "Coalition forces have seized IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and components that were clearly produced in Iran."

The bombs have taken a heavy toll on U.S. forces as well as Iraqi civilians. There have been more than 2,300 U.S. military deaths since the 2003 invasion.

Bush said Iran had been responsible for some of the increasing lethality of attacks in Iraq.

"Such actions, along with Iran's support for terrorism and its pursuit of nuclear weapons, are increasingly isolating Iran," he said. Iran has denied meddling in Iraq and says its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.

U.S. officials have previously accused predominantly Shi'ite Iran of giving training and weapons to Shi'ite militias operating in Iraq -- charges rejected by Iran's leaders.

While taking a mostly positive view of Iraqi forces, Bush said police were lagging behind the army in training and there had been reports of infiltration of some units by Shi'ite militias -- a problem he said was being corrected.

But Bush gave no sign of when the 132,000 U.S. troops in Iraq would start coming home. "We will not lose our nerve," he said in the speech to be followed by two more addresses this month and possibly more in April.

In response, House of Representatives Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California urged Bush to "provide a strategy to bring our brave men and women home safely and soon."

Bush made a similar public relations push in December seeking to shore up support for the war, which was launched three years ago for the stated purpose of ridding Iraq of weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found.

Saddam Testifies, but Judge Cuts Him Off

By BASSEM MROUE

BAGHDAD, Iraq -

Saddam Hussein testified Wednesday for the first time at his trial, and the judge closed the court after the ex-dictator's speech calling for Iraqis to end sectarian violence and fight U.S. troops instead.

Even as the judge repeatedly yelled at Saddam to stop making what he called political speeches, the deposed leader read from a prepared text, insisting he was still Iraq's president.

"Let the (Iraqi) people unite and resist the invaders and their backers. Don't fight among yourselves," he said, praising the insurgency. "In my eyes, you are the resistance to the American invasion."

Finally, Chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman ordered the session closed to the public, telling journalists to leave the chamber. The delayed video feed also was cut.

"The court has decided to turn this into a secret and closed session,"
he said.

After nearly two hours, reporters were called back into the court, where Saddam sat alone in the defendants' pen before the judge.

The former Iraqi leader then refused to answer questions from the chief prosecutor, demanding to see a copy of his testimony given to investigators before the trial began. Prosecutors agreed and said they would question Saddam in the next session.

Abdel-Rahman then adjourned the trial until April 5.

Saddam was the last of the case's eight defendants to testify. Though he has spoken frequently since the trial began in October, Wednesday's session was to be the first chance for the judge and prosecutors to directly question him on charges of killing 148 Shiites and imprisoning and torturing others during a 1982 crackdown against the Shiite town of Dujail.

Instead, Saddam — dressed in a black suit — read from his statement, insisting he was Iraq's elected president and calling the trial a "comedy."

He addressed the "great Iraqi people" — a phrase he often used in his speeches as president — and urged them to stop the wave of Shiite-Sunni violence that has rocked the country since the Feb. 22 bombing of the Askariya shrine in Samarra.

"What pains me most is what I heard recently about something that aims to harm our people," Saddam said. "My conscience tells me that the great people of Iraq have nothing to do with these acts."

Saddam Hussein testifies during his trial in Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, March 15, 2006. Saddam and seven co-defendants are on trial for torture, illegal arrests and the killing of nearly 150 people from Dujail after a 1982 assassination attempt on Saddam in the town. (AP Photo/Jacob Silberberg, Pool)
AP Photo: Saddam Hussein testifies
during his trial in Baghdad, Iraq,

Abdel-Rahman interrupted, saying Saddam was not allowed to give political speeches in the court.

"I am the head of state,"
Saddam replied.

"You used to be a head of state. You are a defendant now,"
Abdel-Rahman barked at Saddam.

As Saddam continued reading from a prepared text, the judge repeatedly turned off his microphone to prevent his words from being heard and told him to address the charges against him. But Saddam ignored the judge and continued reading from his text.

"You are being tried in a criminal case. Stop your political speech,"
Abdel-Rahman said angrily.

"Had it not been for politics I wouldn't be here,"
Saddam replied.

He went on, urging Iraqis not to fight each other.

"What happened in the last days is bad," he said. "You will live in darkness and rivers of blood for no reason."

He continued:

"The bloodshed that they (the Americans) have caused to the Iraqi people only made them more intent and strong to evict the foreigners from their land and liberate their country."

At one point, Abdel-Rahman screamed at him,

"Respect yourself!"

Saddam shouted back:

"You respect yourself!"

"

You are being tried in a criminal case for killing innocent people, not because of your conflict with America,"
Abdel-Rahman said.

Saddam responded,

"What about the innocent people who are dying in Baghdad? I am talking to the Iraqi people."

The stormy session was a stark contrast to the past three hearings, when each of Saddam's seven co-defendants was questioned by Abdel-Rahman and the chief prosecutor.

Saddam and the seven former members of his regime face possible execution by hanging if they are convicted in connection with the crackdown in Dujail following a July 8, 1982, shooting attack on Saddam's motorcade in the town.

Last month, Saddam stood up in court and boldly acknowledged that he ordered the 148 Shiites put on trial before his Revolutionary Court, which eventually sentenced them all to death. But Saddam insisted it was his right to do so since they were suspected in the attempt to kill him.

Before Saddam's testimony, his half brother Barzan Ibrahim — who headed the feared Mukhabarat intelligence agency at the time of the Dujail attack — was questioned for more than three hours by the chief judge and prosecutor.

Chief prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi showed the court a series of Mukhabarat documents on the Dujail case from 1982 and 1983, some of which bore signatures he said were Ibrahim's. One of them was a memo from Ibrahim's office asking Saddam for rewards for six Mukhabarat officers involved in the Dujail crackdown.

"This is not my signature. My signature is easy to forge, and this is forged,"
Ibrahim said.

He said the same of another document listing Dujail families whose farmlands were razed in retaliation for the shooting. Another document, signed by an assistant to Ibrahim, talked about hundreds of Dujail detainees being held at Mukhabarat headquarters and the notorious

bu Abu Ghraib prison.

Ibrahim said that memo as well was forged.

At the end of Wednesday's session, Abdel-Rahman ordered forensic tests on the signatures to determine their veracity.

In previous sessions, Dujail residents testified that Ibrahim participated in torturing them at Mukhabarat headquarters. One woman claimed Ibrahim kicked her in the chest while she was hung upside down and naked by her interrogators.

But Ibrahim insisted the Mukhabarat was not involved in the investigation into the attack on Saddam and denied any personal role in the crackdown.

"I didn't order any detentions. I didn't interrogate anyone,"
he said, adding that he resigned from the Mukhabarat in August 1983.
"There is not a single document showing that I was involved in the investigation."

Ibrahim insisted that the General Security agency carried out the Dujail crackdown. He said his only involvement came on the day of the shooting, when he went to the village and ordered security officials to release Dujail residents who had been arrested.

The defense has argued that Saddam's government acted within its rights to respond after the assassination attempt on the former Iraqi leader.

The prosecutor has sought to show that the crackdown went well beyond the authors of the attack to punish Dujail's civilian population, saying entire families were arrested and tortured and that the 148 people killed were sentenced to death without a proper trial.

Iraqi Leaders Begin Meetings With U.S.

Iraqi Leaders Begin Meetings With U.S.: "BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Leaders of Iraq's main political blocs began a round of marathon meetings Tuesday with the U.S. ambassador in an attempt to reach agreement on a broad-based government."

Adbul-Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the main Shiite bloc, hosted the meeting, which was also attended by Kurdish, Sunni and secular leaders.

Iraq has been headed by a caretaker government since Dec. 15 parliamentary elections, and officials fear the vacuum in authority has contributed to surges of sectarian killing.

The new parliament is scheduled to meet for the first time Thursday, setting in motion a 60-day deadline for the legislature to elect a new president, approve the nomination of a prime minister and sign off on his Cabinet.


From left, Iraqi leader of the largest Sunni bloc, Adnan al-Dulaimi, Adnan Pachachi, a secular Sunni representing Ayad Allawi, a Shiite and former prime minister, Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, and Shiite leader Adbul-Aziz al-Hakim, during a meeting of Iraqi political leaders and U.S. ambassdor, in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, March 12, 2006.Iraqi political leaders emerged from a 90-minute meeting with the U.S. ambassador Sunday and said that the first session of the new parliament would be held on Thursday, three days earlier than initially announced. The formation of a strong central government is key to U.S. hopes to announce troop withdrawals beginning this summer. (AP Photo/Mohammed Hato)
From left, Iraqi leader of the largest Sunni bloc, Adnan al-Dulaimi, Adnan Pachachi, a secular Sunni representing Ayad Allawi, a Shiite and former prime minister, Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, and Shiite leader Adbul-Aziz al-Hakim, during a meeting of Iraqi political leaders and U.S. ambassdor, in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, March 12, 2006.Iraqi political leaders emerged from a 90-minute meeting with the U.S. ambassador Sunday and said that the first session of the new parliament would be held on Thursday, three days earlier than initially announced. The formation of a strong central government is key to U.S. hopes to announce troop withdrawals beginning this summer. (AP Photo/Mohammed Hato) (Mohammed Hato - AP)


Leaders of the main ethnic and religious blocs, however, have been unable to agree on key issues, including how many positions various groups will have in the government, who will fill key posts and the government's program of action.

Among the most contentious is Shiite Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's candidacy for a second term. Kurdish, Sunni and some secular leaders argue he is too divisive a figure and accuse him of doing too little to contain a wave of reprisal violence triggered by the Feb. 22 bombing of a revered Shiite shrine in Samarra.

The Shiite United Iraqi Alliance is itself divided over al-Jaafari. He won the nomination by just one vote last month in large part because of the support of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Al-Hakim favored Adil Abdul-Mahdi, one of two current vice presidents.

The stakes are high for the United States, which hopes the formation of an inclusive government would help stabilize Iraq so U.S. forces can start drawing down in the summer.

U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad has been shuttling between the main Iraqi factions in a bid to reinvigorate negotiations that have dragged on for nearly three months.

Leaders of the main blocs agreed at a meeting with Khalilzad on Sunday to move parliament's inaugural session forward by three days in part to show their resolve to break the deadlock.

Also present at Tuesday's meeting were President Jalal Talabani and Massoud Barzani, leaders of the main Kurdish parties; Dhafir al-Ani, an official with the main Sunni bloc; and former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, a secular Shiite.

Baghdad warlord warns followers against retaliation

Baghdad warlord warns followers against retaliation - World - theage.com.au: "THE Iraqi capital is bracing itself for another round of retribution attacks by Shiites after six car bombs ripped through markets in the Shiite bastion of Sadr City, killing up to 50 evening shoppers and wounding 200."

Gunmen and explosions killed 12 Iraqis elsewhere in the capital, while the bodies of a dozen others were found around the city.

However Iraq's radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said yesterday that he would not order his militia to strike Sunni al-Qaeda militants because that would mean civil war.

"I could order the Mahdi Army to root out the terrorists and fundamentalists but this would lead us into civil war and we don't want that,"
Sheikh Sadr told a news conference in the Shiite holy city of Najaf.

Forces of the radical imam had earlier threatened an immediate response.


Burning debris clouds Baghdad after six car bombs exploded in the Shiite suburb of Sadr City.

Burning debris clouds Baghdad after six car bombs exploded in the Shiite suburb of Sadr City.
Photo: Kareem Raheem

The attacks came as the US ambassador to Baghdad, Zalmay Khalilzad, struck a new note of despondency in his assessment of the political crisis that has spurred waves of attacks since elections late last year.

After another fruitless attempt by Iraq's political leaders to resolve their differences on Sunday, the ambassador said: "I think the situation is such that there's a degree of vacuum in authority. The need on an urgent basis to form a government of national unity is there."

It was a sharp rebuke that reveals Washington's frustration at its inability to accelerate the Iraqi political process. The US is hoping to create a security environment in which it might make significant cuts to its huge military deployment in Iraq.

Iraqi observers speculated that the co-ordinated attacks on a sprawling city sector that is so identifiably Sheikh Sadr's power base would provoke revenge attacks on the same scale as those that followed last month's bombing of the Shiite Golden Mosque at Samarra.

As the wounded stumbled from Sunday's carnage, 25-year-old metalworker Jafar Thamer Nahee said: "I was inside a bathhouse and I heard a loud boom. Tens of people were taken away by ambulances. The police and Mahdi Army set up checkpoints everywhere and they all carried weapons."

The Sadr City bombers struck shortly after Mr Khalilzad and leaders of Iraq's main ethnic and religious blocs concluded a news conference to announce an agreement to move forward the first session of the new parliament to Thursday.

The political leaders said they would hold meetings in an attempt to reach agreement on a new government. Mr Khalilzad said he would be available to join the talks at any time.

Among the issues to be discussed are how many positions various blocs will get in the new government, and who will fill key posts. The first parliamentary session will take place three months after the December 15 elections and a month after the results were confirmed.

Two police officers were killed and four wounded in two separate car bomb attacks targeting police patrols in Kurdish areas of Kirkuk, the oil capital of northern Iraq yesterday.

Four police were wounded by the first car bomb, police said. The second car bomb killed two policemen as their patrol passed.