BAGHDAD (AP): An influential Sunni leader issued an impassioned appeal Sunday for help from Arab countries against what he called Iranian-supported death squads and militias in the latest blow to the Iraqi government’s reconciliation efforts.
Adnan al-Dulaimi, the leader of the largest Sunni bloc in parliament, the Iraqi Accordance Front, warned that Baghdad was in danger of falling into the hands of the "Persians" and "Safawis," using terms referring to Iran.
"Arabs, your brothers in the land of the two rivers and in Baghdad in particular are exposed to an unprecedented genocide campaign by the militias and death squads that are directed, armed and supported by Iran," al-Dulaimi said in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press by his office.
Most of Iraq’s neighboring countries are majority Sunni, while Iran and Iraq have mostly Shiite populations, raising regional concern about Tehran’s influence over the Iraq Shiite-dominated government and security forces.
Al-Dulaimi’s words reflected growing frustration among Sunnis with al-Maliki’s government, which is widely accused of having a Shiite bias and has failed to stop the execution-style killings believed carried out mainly by Shiite-led death squads. Bombings usually blamed on Sunni extremists also have persisted.
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The U.S. military also has stepped up claims that Tehran is fueling violence in Iraq by supplying Shiite militias with training and powerful weapons. The Iranians have denied the claims.
Al-Maliki last week made his second trip to Iran since taking office in what many critics claimed was proof of Iran’s influence over his government.
The Shiite leader defended the trip and said he would continue traveling to other countries to seek help in stemming the violence.
"Our trip to Turkey and Iran was very positive and we got support and promises of continuous support and of providing services," he said at a separate news conference. "Iraq has turned into the center of terrorism. Iraq will only succeed through reconciliation."
Al-Maliki said he planned a meeting of political leaders to discuss demands for political reform made by various factions, including the Accordance Front, which has withdrawn its ministers from Cabinet meetings.
"We will see if these demands are legitimate or not and we will apologize if it is not possible to implement them," he said.
But al-Dulaimi’s remarks made no mention of reconciliation efforts.
He said urgent action was needed against what he described as an organized campaign by Shiite militias to drive Sunnis from the capital.
"Areas such as Azamiyah, Sulaikh, Fadhil, Dora, Adil, Jami’a, Ghazaliyah, Amiriyah and Yarmouk are attacked daily by Iranian-made mortars that were given to militias to eradicate the Sunnis," the statement said, referring to neighborhoods in Baghdad.
He also made the point during a press conference at his house in Adil, a Sunni-dominated neighborhood in western Baghdad.
"I call on all Arabs, Muslims, presidents and kings and people to intervene and urge the Iraqi government to get out from this crisis and I call on them to stand beside Iraqis against violence and the oppression that come to us from Iran and its agents," Al Dulaimi said.
Al-Dulaimi accused Arab nations of ignoring the plight of Sunnis in Iraq and warned it would have regionwide implications, saying more than 2 million Sunnis already have fled Iraq to Syria, Jordan and Egypt.
"Four years have passed with violations against our land, occupying our mosques, killing us, displacing us and marginalizing us while you Arabs were unaware and did not make any move," he said. "You did not even bother to denounce what is taking place against your brothers at the hands of Iranian militias and death squads."
"If you think that what is taking place in Baghdad will end there, you are wrong and if you think it is in Iraq only, you are mistaken. It is a war that has started in Baghdad and they will not stop there but will expand it to all Arab lands," he said.
"Your Sunni brothers in the land of two rivers are calling upon you and appeal to you to help them," he said. "You have to move strongly using all authorities, potentials and relations with the international community to defend Iraq’s identity and to keep Baghdad an Arab fortress."
