Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
Newser - Current News - Breaking Stories

« Back to the grid | Next story »

US Pushes for Sunni-Shiite Reconciliation

Posted Jan 14, 08 2:59 PM CST in World 

(Newser) – Convincing Iraq’s Shiite-dominated government to embrace the former Sunni insurgents known as “Concerned Local Citizens” is the key priority for US leaders in Iraq, the LA Times reports. The US-funded CLCs have been vital to Iraq’s improving security, patrolling areas without a regular police presence. But Iraqi leaders are resisting, fearing the creation of a rival Sunni army.

The 70,000 CLCs are too numerous to integrate into the Iraqi police. To compensate, many are being trained to fill civil service roles instead. But if reconciliation fails, US military leaders fear CLCs could coalesce into an army and cause civil war. "One of our biggest risks are CLCs and which way they'll go," said an aide to the US commander in Iraq.
Source: Los Angeles Times

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Iraq Parliament Delays Vote on US Security Pact

    Nov 26, 08 10:42 AM CST
    Iraq Parliament Delays Vote on US Security Pact Intense dealmaking among Iraq's political factions has delayed until tomorrow a parliamentary vote on the security pact that would allow American forces to stay in the country through 2011. The Shiite-led government is struggling to meet the demands of political blocs, including a large group of Sunni Arab lawmakers, seeking concessions in return for supporting the agreement. More »

  • Maliki's Power Grabs Stir Fears of 'Shiite Saddam'

    Nov 24, 08 10:18 AM CST
    Maliki's Power Grabs Stir Fears of 'Shiite Saddam' Ratification this week of a deal that would put an expiration date on the US deployment in Iraq stands to boost the prestige of PM Nouri al-Maliki, who in recent months has consolidated his power in moves that echo previous authoritarian regimes. As one Western observer tells the Los Angeles Times, Maliki is poised to become “a benevolent Shiite Saddam.” More »

  • Iraqi Troops: 'We're Not Ready to Go It Alone'

    Aug 6, 08 6:51 AM CDT
    Iraqi Troops: 'We're Not Ready to Go It Alone' Iraq’s army has taken strides toward independence—but it still needs the help of American forces, say Iraqi troops and officers interviewed by the New York Times. “We are too many years behind other countries. We need the coalition forces until 2015,” said one officer. But American officers are increasingly pushing Iraqi troops to go it alone.
    More »

  • Refugees: Iraq's Unspoken Crisis

    Jun 26, 08 6:56 AM CDT
    Refugees: Iraq's Unspoken Crisis New York Times columnist Nicholas D. Kristof travels to Jordan to report on one of the unintended consequences of the Iraq war: a regional refugee crisis. About 2 million Iraqis, mostly Sunnis, have fled since the war, living mostly in Jordan and Syria in deplorable conditions. "They are the new Palestinians," writes Kristof, "the 21st-century Arab diaspora that threatens the region’s stability." More »

  • Sunni Bloc Signals Return to Iraq Cabinet

    Apr 24, 08 3:04 PM CDT
    Sunni Bloc Signals Return to Iraq Cabinet The biggest Sunni bloc in Iraq is returning to the government after a nine-month boycott, encouraged by a new amnesty law and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s redoubled attention to Shiite militias, the New York Times reports. Which cabinet positions the Tawafiq bloc will get, and which members will hold them, is still up in the air. More »

A member of the Concerned Local Citizens Group is seen in Quarghuli Village, about 12 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2007. Lt. Gen. Odierno paid a visit to the village to thank the...   (Associated Press)
A member of the Concerned Local Citizens Group, right, and a U.S. Army soldier from 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry stand guard as an Iraqi family watches Iraqi soldiers search their home during a joint patrol...   (Associated Press)
A member of the Concerned Local Citizens Group stands guard over a man suspected of weapons trafficking during a joint patrol with U.S. and Iraqi troops in Hawr Rajab, a predominantly Sunni area of southern...   (Associated Press)
Member of Local Concerned Citizens holds an alleged al-Qaida suspect in a small village of al-Aswad near the city of Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007. (AP Photo)   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Related Threads

(1 of 2)

Tags

Iraq • Iraq war • Shiite • Iraq government • Sunnis • Iraqi soldiers • Concerned Local Citizens


Loading...

Today's Most Popular

[ Stories ]

Threads

Loading...

Other World Stories