Word: baghdad
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...Speaking from Baghdad on Monday, Army Colonel John Hort of the 4th Infantry Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team, said that the SOFA simply recognizes what is already happening inside Iraq. "We're kind of already moving in that direction - even prior to the SOFA - with the Iraqi army taking more and more responsibility, more and more of the lead, particularly the targeting of the bad people," Hort told Pentagon reporters in a video press conference. "So I don't see a significant change...
...Admiral Mullen said Monday that he believes sufficient Iraqi forces will be trained by 2012 to assume responsibility for all of Iraq's security. While most of Iraq is now under the control of the Iraqi military, Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul remain under U.S. control. Turning the capital over to Iraqi security forces "will be a big challenge," Mullen said, and "we continue to be in a pretty tough fight up in Mosul...
...Federalism is a deeply divisive issue among Iraqis. The Constitution adopted under U.S. occupation stipulates that any of the 18 provinces, except Baghdad, can combine to form regions similar to the northern Kurdish-run zone, which has been semi-autonomous since 1991. While the Kurds insist upon the principle, the Sunnis have traditionally been strongly opposed. Among the Shi'ites, the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) has favored the idea a super region in the south, but the movement of the radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has insisted on a strong central state. But the proposal to turn Basra into...
...Kurds have signed contracts with foreign oil companies to exploit oil fields in their region, contracts that Baghdad's Oil Ministry says are illegal. In his comments last week, Prime Minister al-Maliki made it clear that the central government must have full responsibility over security, sovereignty and "other issues". "If there is no clear vision of the political system and sovereignty, we will turn into real governments fighting each other," he said...
...unlikely that either Washington or Baghdad will agree to any further delays on the agreement. Not only is the Dec. 31 end of the U.N. mandate nearing, but the parliament is slated to go into recess from Nov. 24 till mid-December. Few lawmakers expect a decision on SOFA before the interlude, and some don't expect an agreement before next year...