Posted on 12/27/2005 4:04:32 PM PST by Gucho
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
By MARGARET FRIEDENAUER - Staff Writer
FORWARD OPERATING BASE Q-WEST--Watching the wheelings and dealings of local Iraqi leaders in this part of the country is like nothing seen on C-Span.
This style of local government is done with heated discussion, a meal, some tea and a handshake. And rather than policy making, these local leaders are more concerned with having heat in schools, providing electricity, and controlling the price of fuel.
The monthly meeting of the Qayyarah West Regional Security Council took place here Monday. The council covers an area the size of West Virginia, south of Mosul, and is the current home to the Task Force 4-11 Field Artillery of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team. Adding to discussions was a handover of power scheduled to take place today when the 4-11 officially turns over a portion of its battle space to an Iraqi battalion, the first time such a transition has occurred between the 172nd and Iraqi forces.
Work was done during an official meeting of nearly 100 people, and discussions continued afterward into lunch .
The security council is a meeting of dozens of Sheiks, or tribal leaders, and "mukhtars," or village leaders, as well as mayors, Iraqi police, and leaders of Army and U.S. forces. The special guest Monday was Brigadier General Wathik, who goes only by his first name. He is chief of police for the Nineveh Province in northern Iraq.
"This conference is a good thing to have," he said. "It's the way to go to the new Iraq, to the democracy," he told the council through an interpreter.
Lt. Col. Scott Wuestner of the 4-11 spoke about the accomplishments of the U.S. forces here, whose primary focus is security. He said last month troops detained 28 suspected terrorists, including five suspected cell leaders. While he is satisfied with the level of security in Qayyarah, he is still concerned with towns to the north and south.
"I need your help to talk to these leaders to talk to them about peace and security," he said.
He also announced that a proposal for an Iraqi police academy at Q-West had been approved and will be starting next month. He said 250 recruits will begin an 11-week training to become officers.
Even with nearly 100 in attendance, Wuestner noted the low turnout for the meeting due to two factors; the cold, rainy conditions that made some travel difficult and the increased price of fuel, which was a major concern for the leaders present Monday.
Fuel prices have tripled since the Iraqi government announced Dec. 18 the beginning of a fuel stabilization program. The government implemented this to abide by International Monetary Fund requirements, the fund is an international assistance organization with 184 member countires.
In return, Iraq was granted a $670 million dollar loan for rebuilding projects. But residents are still irked by the increases. The price for fuel has essentially tripled, now hovering around 150 dinar, or about 10 cents a liter.
"As we understand it, the gas price will not drop and they will stay at the same levels," Wuestner said.
The issue of electrical power was also a major topic of discussion for the leaders, who at times got boisterous and animated with the local engineer in charge of the power supply.
The average power in all of Iraq is on 12 hours a day, which meets international standards, but not always the satisfaction of the leaders. But Wuestner reminded the leaders that the power grid is simply not large enough to support the growing region just yet.
Aside from fuel prices and power, unemployment is a major concern in this area. U.S. forces are trying to assist local leaders with planning and attaining funds for civic improvements that will also offer jobs for residents.
After the official meeting the leaders joined together for a lunch of lamb, rice and flat bread and the meat of the discussions.
The local leaders crowded around the Iraqi army officials, Wuestner and captains who help direct civil projects. Capt. Jeffery Ferguson, Alpha Battery, discussed several local projects with the leaders in his area of responsibility.
There's been work on roads, schools, clinics, posters for bus stops, organized trash pickups and other projects. Monday, he and Sheik Mohmod al tabar Al Jubory and Mayor Saleh heseen Ali were deciding how to organize some work on three local schools.
The improvements being pitched are basic: new windows, doors, paint and heaters. The projects would also offer job opportunities and experience to local residents. "It's real simple labor," Ferguson said. "Unskilled labor."
Ferguson and the men discussed hiring one contractor to oversee all three projects. The men first balked at this, wanting to give the opportunity to more than one person. But Ferguson said by consolidating the project under one contractor, it makes it easier to get the funds approved.
Ferguson also handed over a hand-written request to Ali from a resident for a park and soccer field to be built at one of the schools. The resident gave the proposal to Ferguson but he turned it over to Ali, he said, because he wants the Iraqi leaders to start taking control of such decisions.
Ali told Ferguson he would reject the proposal. "This is not important," he said. "The school is more important. This is nice to have, but we have to have the important stuff first."
After agreeing on how to go about the school improvements, Al Jubory said he wanted to talk about security. He said he was concerned with the handover of power scheduled to take place today when the 4-11 officially turns over a portion of its battle space to an Iraqi battalion.
He is concerned about the coalition forces' reduced role and if the Iraqi forces can step up and provide the same level of security. "The Iraqi army is not strong enough," he said through an interpreter. "They still need help."
But Ferguson reassured Al Jubory that the handover does not mean U.S. forces are leaving the Iraqi army high-and-dry, just that they are taking a backseat to a capable local security force. Ferguson said the U.S. forces will still be available to the Iraqi forces when needed and will continue to work with local leaders on civic projects.
"We will be here a very long time helping Iraqi people," Ferguson said.
Margaret Friedenauer is embedded with the 172nd Stryker Combat Team in Iraq. Contact her and read her stories and behind-the-scenes blog entries at www.newsminer.com/iraq.
Tue Dec 27, 2005 - 9:27 AM GMT
By H. Hashim Ahmed
KUWAIT (Reuters) - A Kuwaiti court on Tuesday sentenced to death six suspected militants linked to al Qaeda for bloody attacks in the country.
The six were among 37 Islamists on trial as members of the "Peninsula Lions" group believed to be linked to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda in Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
They include 25 Kuwaitis, seven stateless Arabs, two Jordanians, a Saudi, an Australian and a Somali.
A Reuters reporter who was at the court said none of the defendants were present when the verdict was announced.
Other suspects received jail terms of between four months to 15 years, and one received a life term.
Seven were acquitted including Islamist cleric Sheikh Hamed al-Ali, lawyer Osama al-Munawer who represents Islamists as well as the wife of Amer al-Enezi -- one of al Qaeda's top leaders in Kuwait who died in custody in February.
"I thank God. I've believed in my innocence all along," Munawer told Reuters by phone. "The death sentence was very tough as it was never proven that they took up arms to fight against anyone. I hope they will get a fair trial on appeal."
A judicial source said 10 of the 37 suspects remain.
Two senior militants who are on the run, Khaled al-Dossari and Mohsen al-Fadli, each received a 10-year jail term in absentia.
Defendants can appeal the verdict.
The suspects were charged with belonging to an "extremist" group, calling for attacks on state facilities, and trying to kill Kuwaiti security forces as well as members of "friendly forces" in the country.
Used as the main launch pad for the 2003 war in Iraq, Kuwait hosts up to 30,000 U.S. troops and some 13,000 U.S. citizens live in Kuwait.
Prosecutors had demanded the death penalty for about 20 suspects for four shootouts in January in which nine Islamists and four security personnel were killed.
Police have said some of the suspects had confessed to planning suicide attacks against U.S. military and Western targets in Kuwait, but several militants have denied the charges saying confessions were extracted under duress.
Kuwait has cracked down on Islamists opposing the U.S. military presence there. Diplomats say radical Islam is taking hold among Kuwaiti youth.
Neighbouring Saudi Arabia has faced an al Qaeda campaign to topple the U.S.-backed monarchy since 2003.
© Reuters 2005
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UPDATED: 6:20 am EST - December 28, 2005
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- An inmate in a Baghdad prison grabbed an assault rifle from a guard Wednesday and opened fire, killing eight people, police said.
The Shiite religious bloc leading Iraq's parliamentary elections, meanwhile, held talks with Kurdish leaders about who should get the top 12 government jobs, as thousands of Sunni Arabs and secular Shiites protested what they say was a tainted vote.
The prisoner fired indiscriminately after grabbing an AK-47, killing four guards and four inmates, said Iraqi army Brig. Gen. Jalil al-Mehamadawi. Three inmates were wounded, he said.
Guards then overtook the gunman and restrained him, he said. The prison was a Justice Ministry facility that also housed foreigners, officials said.
The U.S. military had no immediate comment.
In another of continuing political demonstrations across the country, more than 4,000 people rallied Wednesday in Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad, in favor of the major Sunni Arab party, the Iraqi Accordance Front. Demonstrators carried banners say "We refuse the election forgery."
The talks between the majority Shiites and Kurds were seen as part of an effort to force the main Sunni Arab organizations to come to the bargaining table. All groups have begun jockeying for position in the new government, and the protests are widely considered to be part of an attempt by Sunni Arabs to maximize their negotiating position.
The discussions come at a critical time for Iraq, with the United States placing high hopes on forming a broad-based coalition government that will provide the fledgling democracy with the stability and security it needs to allow American troops to begin returning home.
Sunni Arabs formed the backbone of Saddam's government, and the Bush administration hopes to pull them away from the insurgency that has ravaged the country with daily bloodshed. The major Sunni Arab party alleges that the Dec. 15 elections were tainted by fraud.
Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Shiite religious coalition dominating the current government, traveled to the northern Kurdish city of Irbil for the meeting with Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish region.
"We held preliminary consultations," al-Hakim said at a joint news conference with Barzani on Tuesday. "All the details need to be studied and we need to evaluate the previous alliance and study its weaknesses and strengths. Then we will try to include the others."
A Kurdish coalition that includes Barzani's Kurdish Democratic Party and President Jalal Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan is now the junior partner in a government led by al-Hakim's United Iraqi Alliance.
Preliminary results from the parliamentary vote have given the United Iraqi Alliance a big lead. Final results are expected early next month, but the Shiite religious bloc may win about 130 seats in the 275-member parliament _ short of the 184 seats needed to avoid a coalition with other parties.
The Kurds could get about 55 seats, the main Sunni Arab groups about 50 and the secular bloc headed by former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, a Shiite, about 25.
More than 10,000 people, some carrying photos of Allawi, demonstrated in central Baghdad on Tuesday in favor of a government that would give more power to Sunni Arabs and secular Shiites. Marchers chanted "No Sunnis, no Shiites, yes for national unity!"
They are demanding that an international body review more than 1,500 complaints, warning they may boycott the new legislature. They also want new elections in some provinces, including Baghdad.
Two Sunni Arab groups and Allawi's Iraqi National List have threatened a wave of protests and civil disobedience if fraud charges are not properly investigated.
But the United Nations has rejected an outside review, and al-Hakim said his bloc and the Kurds also were against it.
The Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq considers 35 of the complaints serious enough to change some local results. It said it began audits Tuesday of ballot boxes taken from about 7,000 polling stations in Baghdad province.
In violence Wednesday, gunmen killed a major in the former Iraqi army and a person in the car with him in eastern Baghdad, police Lt. Thair Mahmoud said. Gunmen in west Baghdad killed Interior Ministry Brig. Haider Ali Saied, a hospital official said.
Elsewhere, police in Karbala said 31 bodies had been unearthed in a mass grave discovered this week that's believed to date back to a 1991 uprising against Saddam Hussein. Officials hoped to identify the bodies through DNA testing. ___
Associated Press reporters Jason Straziuso in Baghdad and Yahya Barzanji in Irbil contributed to this report.
The Associated Press
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