UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE ...
UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE ...
UNHCR's ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSING THE ...
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Division, based in the Governorate of Diyala, was penetrated by a Shi’ite militia and<br />
conducted a campaign of intimidation against Sunnis in the mixed Governorate. Colonel<br />
Brian D. Jones, the commander of US Forces in Diyala, said “I believe this is a larger plan<br />
to make Diyala a Shia province, rather than a Sunni province.” 123<br />
Despite repeated announcements by the current Government of Prime Minister Nouri Al-<br />
Maliki to purge the ISF and crack down on militias, the government has shown little will<br />
and ability to confront these powerful groups. 124 On 18 January 2007, Iraqi officials<br />
announced that, for the first time, they had taken significant action against the Mehdi Army<br />
by arresting dozens of its senior leaders. Four days later, the US military announced it had<br />
arrested more than 600 Mehdi Army fighters. 125 On 8 February 2007, the MNF/ISF<br />
arrested Deputy Health Minister Al-Zamili, accusing him of diverting millions of dollars to<br />
the Mehdi Army and allowing death squads to use ambulances and government hospitals to<br />
carry out kidnappings and killings. 126 On 14 February 2007, the Iraqi Government declared<br />
a new security crackdown, dubbed “Operation Imposing Law” (or the Baghdad Security<br />
Plan), in conjunction with US forces in Iraq in an aim to put an end to sectarian violence.<br />
Al-Maliki vowed to go against all armed groups, irrespective of their religious affiliation. 127<br />
Significant improvements of the security situation in Baghdad and Al-Anbar Governorate<br />
are not expected until the summer and fall 2007 and there is wide consensus that security<br />
measures must be accompanied by political steps towards reconciliation. 128 The U.S.<br />
123 Solomon Moore, A promising Iraqi province is now a tinderbox, Los Angeles Times, 3 January 2007,<br />
http://www.siteinstitute.org/bin/articles.cgi?ID=news234907&Category=news&Subcategory=0; Richard A.<br />
Oppel Jr., Sectarian rifts foretell pitfalls of Iraqi troops’ taking control, The New York Times, 11 November<br />
2006, http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/11/africa/web.1111diyala.php.<br />
124 For example, on 28 October 2006, Al-Maliki criticised a raid carried out by the MNF/ISF on Sadr City,<br />
which, according to US military had taken place with the permission of the Iraqi Government; and on 31<br />
October 2006, Al-Maliki ordered US and Iraqi units to lift a blockade around Sadr City, the stronghold of the<br />
Mehdi Army; Middle East Online, Hassen Jouini, Iraqi PM hands Sadr victory over US blockade, 31 October<br />
2006, http://www.iraqupdates.com/p_articles.php/article/11454; Al Jazeera, Iraqi PM criticises raid on Sadr<br />
City, 28 October 2006, http://english.aljazeera.net/news/archive/archive?ArchiveId=38105; NPR, Jamie<br />
Tarabay, Troops Raid Sadr City; Maliki Disavows Timeline, 25 October 2006, http://www.npr.org/templates/<br />
story/story.php?storyId=6383365. On Al-Maliki’s relationship with Muqtada Al-Sadr and his difficulties to<br />
rein in the militias, see also: Lionel Beehner, Maliki and Sadr: An Alliance of Convenience, 24 October 2006,<br />
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), http://www.cfr.org/publication/11787/; Sumedha Senanayake, Iraq:<br />
Shi’ite Militia Continues To Pose Dilemma, RFE/RL, 20 October 2006, http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/<br />
2006/10/62bf8567-beb1-4fbb-a3f9-773bc68560c7.html.<br />
125 Sumedha Senanayake, Iraq: Cracking Down On Al-Sadr No Easy Task, RFE/RL, 26 January 2006,<br />
http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/01/6816daab-ebad-400e-a71a-bc852515f8b7.html; Sabrina<br />
Tavernise, Shi’ite Fighters Are Arrested, Iraq Says, The New York Times, 18 January 2007,<br />
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/18/world/middleeast/18mahdi.html.<br />
126 Kim Gamel, Iraqi Official Tied to Militia Jailed, AP, 8 February 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/<br />
wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801049.html.<br />
127 BBC News, Iraqi PM wins key security vote, 25 January 2007,<br />
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6298839.stm.<br />
128 See Marc Santora, Top U.S. General in Iraq Says New Plan to Pacify Baghdad May Take Months to<br />
Show Results, The New York Times, 15 January 2007, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/world/<br />
middleeast/16iraq.html?ex=1326603600&en=f09d6094c80a4294&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss.<br />
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