« Dutch Shocked by Public Death Wish from Muslim. Coming to America? | Main | In election bid, Palestinian lifer Barghouti decides to run -- from prison »
November 25, 2004
Iraqi Government Meeting with Saddam supporters
Topics: Middle East News and PerspectivesNews.com.au reports November 26, 2004.
No date for the meeting was announced, and Mr Zebari did not say who
would attend, although he ruled out contacts with "terrorists".
It appeared the contacts, which he said were encouraged by Arab
governments, were aimed at trying to strike a deal with "nationalist"
opposition groups and dividing them from religious extremists such as
al-Qaeda-linked terror boss Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Read More... Also, Middle East AP reports that a key aide of al-Zarqawi, who was
believed to have been based in Fallujah, had been arrested in Mosul,
where insurgents rose up this month in support of the Fallujah
fighters.
THE Iraqi government has agreed to meet outside
the country with Saddam Hussein supporters to try to convince them to
abandon the insurgency, a senior Iraqi official said today.
In a bid to draw Sunni support for the January elections, Foreign
Minister Hoshyar Zebari said an Iraqi delegation would meet in Amman,
Jordan, with "a number of political opposition movements", including
some former Saddam Hussein supporters on the "most wanted list", to
convince them to abandon the insurgency and take part in the election.
Dawoud identified him only as Abu Saeed and did not say whether he had fled Fallujah. The Iraqi official said the death toll for the entire Fallujah operation stood at more than 2,085, although he gave no breakdown. About 54 U.S. troops were among those killed.
In the southern city of Basra, police said Thursday they had arrested five Arab foreign fighters who escaped from Fallujah with plans to attack coalition troops and Iraqi police in the south.
The five -- two Saudis, two Tunisians and a Libyan, were arrested Wednesday night at a checkpoint north of Basra, police said.
With resistance in Fallujah nearly ended, some 5,000 U.S., British and Iraqi forces have turned their sights on insurgent strongholds just south of Baghdad. U.S. officials said 81 suspected rebels were wounded up early Thursday in raids around Youssifiyeh.
About 116 suspects have been detained since the offensive, codenamed "Operation Plymouth Rock," began Tuesday, the military said. Read More...
Captains Quarters has further comments on the story.
Posted by Hyscience at November 25, 2004 5:36 PM
Articles Related to Middle East News and Perspectives:
- Iraqi Government Meeting with Saddam supporters - Nov 25, 2004
