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Iraqis weigh limits on U.S. military
Leaders of parliament may seek to restrict American operations in response
to a rash of civilian casualties.
By Christian Berthelsen
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 23, 2007
BAGHDAD - Leaders in the Iraqi parliament said Monday that they were taking
steps to examine the U.S. military presence in Iraq with an eye toward
possibly restricting the force's activities, in a continuing backlash over
an American raid that Iraqi officials say killed 13 civilians.
Before the end of the year, the United Nations is expected to take up its
annual reauthorization of a Security Council resolution that allows the
presence of U.S. troops here. Iraqi leaders have complained that the U.S.
military has used too much force in responding to attacks, leading to the
deaths of civilians, and that the Americans have not coordinated enough with
Iraqi forces.
The U.S. military maintained that it killed 49 "criminals" in the raid
Sunday on Sadr City, a mostly Shiite Muslim neighborhood in the Iraqi
capital, and was unaware of any civilian casualties. But journalists for
Western news organizations, including The Times, saw the bodies of two
children at the Imam Ali hospital who were killed in the attack and
interviewed other children who were wounded.
The parliament speaker's office, which includes representatives from all
three of Iraq's major ethnic groups, issued a statement Monday saying: "The
Iraqi parliament condemns these violations that are against the basics of
military work and human rights. . . . The Iraqi parliament is taking these
negative violations seriously as it touches the life and dignity of Iraqis."
Leaders in parliament are to meet Oct. 31 to consider forming a committee,
to be made up of representatives from various parties, to make
recommendations on limitations Iraq should seek in the U.N. resolution.
Factions are already squaring off, with some Sunni Arab moderates saying
that the continued U.S. presence is crucial to Iraq's future and Shiite
leaders angry over the U.S. incursions into their neighborhoods seeking to
curtail the American presence.
It is not clear what recommendations the committee might ultimately make,
but members of parliament speculated Monday that they could include limiting
the U.S. presence to certain areas in Iraq. The committee also could express
a desire for a mission statement that the primary goal of American troops
should be to train Iraqi forces, while establishing a timeline for U.S.
withdrawal.
A recommendation to oppose the U.N. reauthorization entirely would appear to
be unlikely.
"We think the issue is about establishing and developing Iraqi security
forces capable of confronting the challenges," said Salim Abdullah Jabouri,
a member of parliament and spokesman for the Iraqi Accordance Front, the
body's main Sunni bloc. "It's not right to speak about not having the
presence of the U.S. forces, taking into consideration the chaos and
security instability."
Iraqis have increasingly chafed under the U.S. occupation, now well into its
fifth year. Passions have been inflamed in recent weeks after a rash of
civilian casualties stemming from military operations gone awry and killings
of unarmed Iraqis by Western security contractors. Two previous military
raids in Sadr City this summer killed a total of more than 50 people.
Should the parliament ultimately move forward with the effort to restrict
U.S. military operations here, it would be the second time this year that
members have sought some form of control over the U.S. presence. In June,
the parliament passed a resolution, over the objections of Prime Minister
Nouri Maliki, requiring the government to seek parliament's permission
before asking the U.N. to extend the authorization for the U.S. troop
presence.
The spokesman for the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David H. Petraeus,
declined to comment, saying he was unfamiliar with the proposal. A
spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy could not be reached by telephone and did
not reply to an e-mail seeking comment.
Any changes to the U.N. military authorization would have to be approved by
the 15-member Security Council, which will vote on the measure after hearing
from military leaders and the Iraqi government. Although Iraq's position
would carry great weight in the deliberations, said Farhan Haq, a spokesman
for the U.N. on Iraq issues, the U.S. is one of five Security Council
members that has veto power and it could dash any changes it finds
unpalatable.
Meanwhile, a roadside bomb in the Shiite enclave of Karada in Baghdad killed
four people Monday and injured 12, including victims who were riding in a
minibus that passed by at the time of the explosion.
An additional three people were killed and 11 injured, including four
policemen, by a pair of roadside bombs near a day laborer site. And another
roadside bomb attack targeting an Iraqi army patrol killed one soldier and
injured two others Monday afternoon.
Police found the bodies of five men, who had been shot to death, on the
streets of Baghdad.
Leaders of parliament may seek to restrict American operations in response
to a rash of civilian casualties.
By Christian Berthelsen
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 23, 2007
BAGHDAD - Leaders in the Iraqi parliament said Monday that they were taking
steps to examine the U.S. military presence in Iraq with an eye toward
possibly restricting the force's activities, in a continuing backlash over
an American raid that Iraqi officials say killed 13 civilians.
Before the end of the year, the United Nations is expected to take up its
annual reauthorization of a Security Council resolution that allows the
presence of U.S. troops here. Iraqi leaders have complained that the U.S.
military has used too much force in responding to attacks, leading to the
deaths of civilians, and that the Americans have not coordinated enough with
Iraqi forces.
The U.S. military maintained that it killed 49 "criminals" in the raid
Sunday on Sadr City, a mostly Shiite Muslim neighborhood in the Iraqi
capital, and was unaware of any civilian casualties. But journalists for
Western news organizations, including The Times, saw the bodies of two
children at the Imam Ali hospital who were killed in the attack and
interviewed other children who were wounded.
The parliament speaker's office, which includes representatives from all
three of Iraq's major ethnic groups, issued a statement Monday saying: "The
Iraqi parliament condemns these violations that are against the basics of
military work and human rights. . . . The Iraqi parliament is taking these
negative violations seriously as it touches the life and dignity of Iraqis."
Leaders in parliament are to meet Oct. 31 to consider forming a committee,
to be made up of representatives from various parties, to make
recommendations on limitations Iraq should seek in the U.N. resolution.
Factions are already squaring off, with some Sunni Arab moderates saying
that the continued U.S. presence is crucial to Iraq's future and Shiite
leaders angry over the U.S. incursions into their neighborhoods seeking to
curtail the American presence.
It is not clear what recommendations the committee might ultimately make,
but members of parliament speculated Monday that they could include limiting
the U.S. presence to certain areas in Iraq. The committee also could express
a desire for a mission statement that the primary goal of American troops
should be to train Iraqi forces, while establishing a timeline for U.S.
withdrawal.
A recommendation to oppose the U.N. reauthorization entirely would appear to
be unlikely.
"We think the issue is about establishing and developing Iraqi security
forces capable of confronting the challenges," said Salim Abdullah Jabouri,
a member of parliament and spokesman for the Iraqi Accordance Front, the
body's main Sunni bloc. "It's not right to speak about not having the
presence of the U.S. forces, taking into consideration the chaos and
security instability."
Iraqis have increasingly chafed under the U.S. occupation, now well into its
fifth year. Passions have been inflamed in recent weeks after a rash of
civilian casualties stemming from military operations gone awry and killings
of unarmed Iraqis by Western security contractors. Two previous military
raids in Sadr City this summer killed a total of more than 50 people.
Should the parliament ultimately move forward with the effort to restrict
U.S. military operations here, it would be the second time this year that
members have sought some form of control over the U.S. presence. In June,
the parliament passed a resolution, over the objections of Prime Minister
Nouri Maliki, requiring the government to seek parliament's permission
before asking the U.N. to extend the authorization for the U.S. troop
presence.
The spokesman for the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David H. Petraeus,
declined to comment, saying he was unfamiliar with the proposal. A
spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy could not be reached by telephone and did
not reply to an e-mail seeking comment.
Any changes to the U.N. military authorization would have to be approved by
the 15-member Security Council, which will vote on the measure after hearing
from military leaders and the Iraqi government. Although Iraq's position
would carry great weight in the deliberations, said Farhan Haq, a spokesman
for the U.N. on Iraq issues, the U.S. is one of five Security Council
members that has veto power and it could dash any changes it finds
unpalatable.
Meanwhile, a roadside bomb in the Shiite enclave of Karada in Baghdad killed
four people Monday and injured 12, including victims who were riding in a
minibus that passed by at the time of the explosion.
An additional three people were killed and 11 injured, including four
policemen, by a pair of roadside bombs near a day laborer site. And another
roadside bomb attack targeting an Iraqi army patrol killed one soldier and
injured two others Monday afternoon.
Police found the bodies of five men, who had been shot to death, on the
streets of Baghdad.
