BAGHDAD,
November 14, 2005 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Iraqi Sunni
leaders have warned anew that continued military and police crackdowns
were alienating their community in the run-up to December elections
for a new parliament amid stark warnings from the UN on human rights
violations.
“As
Iraqis are gearing up for the upcoming polls, crackdowns on Sunnis
have been noticeably increased,” the People of Iraq Congress said in
a statement Sunday, November 13, a copy of which was obtained by
IslamOnline.net.
“The
aim is crystal clear: excluding the Sunnis in particular from the
polling stations and the political landscape all in all.”
It
further charged that the ministries of interior and defense as well as
militias affiliated with some parties were behind the mass arrests of
Sunni leaders in Diyala and Al-Anbar provinces, northeast and west of
Baghdad.
The
Shiite-led government must “halt its military operations” and
release political and religious leaders arrested in Diyala, the body,
which is headed by Sunni leader Adnan Al-Dulaimi, added.
Iraqi
security forces Saturday, November 12, arrested more than 350 people
in Baquba, the capital of Diyala, including members of the Islamic
Party.
US
and Iraqi troops have also been involved in major operations in
Al-Anbar province, near the Syrian border, sweeping through several
towns whose residents fled the offensives.
On
his part, Khalaf Al-Elian, Secretary General of the National Dialogue
Council, urged the people of Al-Anbar to declare civil disobedience in
response to the “grisly crimes committed by the US-backed Iraqi
troops.”
The
Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS) further accused the US-led and
Iraqi troops of launching an “ethnic cleansing” operation against
the Sunnis.
“They
are dividing Iraq and sparking a deadly sectarian sedition in the
country,” AMS spokesman Mohammad Bashar Al-Faidi told IOL.
Hell
 |
|
An
Iraqi
soldier patrols a street during Operation Steel Curtain in
Husaybah. (Reuters).
|
The
Islamic Party further said that the military offensives are making the
life of local people “hell.”
“These
operations have claimed the lives of innocent civilians and destroyed
homes,” it said in a statement carried by Agence France-Presse
(AFP).
“The
party condemns these military operations and calls for their immediate
halt in all provinces, especially Al-Anbar and Diyala,” it said.
Such
operations are “likely to undermine both the political process in
these provinces and the security situation” in the run-up to the
December 15 elections, it added.
The
US military said Monday, November 14, air strikes had killed about 37
“insurgents” in the latest phase of a fresh offensive near the
Syrian border in western Iraq and 25 “insurgents” had been
captured, Reuters reported.
Operation
Steel Curtain, launched just over a week ago, entered a new phase
Monday when US and Iraqi troops moved into the town of Ubaydi, on the
banks of the Euphrates River, 20 km (13 miles) from the border.
About
2,500 US troops and 1,000 Iraqi soldiers have already swept through
the towns of Qusayba and Karabila, clearing houses and battling with
locals.
Several
similar offensives have been carried out over the past six months,
including a series of sweeps ahead of a referendum held in
mid-October.
Rights'
Violations
The
United Nations, meanwhile, warned Monday of human rights violations by
all sides in war-torn Iraq and expressed concern at the increasing
number of people held on terrorist-related charges.
The
UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) suggested that Iraqi police and
special forces have little regard for human rights during security
sweeps, reported AFP.
“Massive
security operations by the Iraqi police and special forces continue to
disregard instructions announced in August 2005 by the minister of
interior to safeguard individual guarantees during searches and
detaining operations,” UNAMI said in its bi-monthly human rights
report covering the period from September 1 to October 31.
And
“ongoing military operations, especially in western and northern
parts of the country, continue to generate displacement and hardship
for thousands of families and to have a devastating effect on the
civilian population,” the report said.
UNAMI
said it was also concerned about the large number of detainees held in
the country.
“While
progress in reviewing cases led to the release of hundreds, the
overall number of detainees continued to increase due to mass arrests
carried out during security and military operations,” the report
said.
UNAMI
gave no figures on the number of those detained, but officials last
month suggested some 18,000 people were being held in US- and
Iraqi-run jails.
UNAMI
also said that "large parts of Iraq continue to experience a
general breakdown of law and order", adding that "hundreds
of civilians have been killed and wounded as a result of terrorist
attacks, targeted assassinations and extra-judicial execution-style
killings."
“Repeated
bombing campaigns by armed groups against civilians and mosques are
increasing fears that community relations are descending into a
pattern of fear, animosity and revenge.”
