APS Diplomat Redrawing the Islamic Map articles from December 2006

APS Diplomat Redrawing the Islamic Map archives from December 2006

Resurgence In The Shi'ite World - Part 12 - Iraq Sunnis Fear Ethnic Cleansing:.
December 25, 2006... Vice-president Tareq al-Hashemi, Iraq's most senior politician from the Sunni Arab minority, on Dec. 17 said more US troops were needed in Baghdad to stop the "systematic cleansing" of the Sunni community by Shi'ite militias. He said some 3,000...

Najaf Handed Over To Iraqis.
December 25, 2006... US-led forces on Dec. 20 handed over security control of Najaf province, whose capital is the seat of Iraq's most powerful Shi'ite clerics, to Iraq, calling it a major step forward in strengthening the government. Iraqi authorities imposed a...

Attacks At Record Levels.
December 25, 2006... A Pentagon assessment of security conditions in Iraq has concluded that attacks against US and Iraqi targets surged this summer and autumn to their highest level yet, and called violence by Shi'ite militants the most significant threat in...

US Spit Over Troops Plan.
December 25, 2006... The Bush administration is split over the idea of a surge in troops to Iraq, with White House officials aggressively promoting the concept over the unanimous disagreement of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Sending 20,000 to 30,000 more troops for a...

Saudis Won't Take Sides.
December 25, 2006... Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal on Dec. 19 said Saudi Arabia would not take sides in Iraqi sectarian violence, denying press reports that Riyadh would support Sunnis in the wake of a US withdrawal from the war-torn country. He told...

British Will Stay.
December 25, 2006... UK Prime Minister Tony Blair pledged his support for the Iraqi government in a surprise visit to Baghdad on Dec. 17 and declared that British troops would remain in Iraq "until the job is done". A kilometre away from where Blair gave his news...

Powell Says US Forces Are Losing.(Colin Powell)
December 25, 2006... Badly overstretched US forces in Iraq are losing the war and a temporary US troop surge will probably not help, according Colin Powell, who has served both as secretary of state and as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In one of his few...

US Told To Make Clean Break.(military strategy)
December 25, 2006... Warning that Iraq faces "complete disintegration into failed-state chaos", the International Crisis Group (ICG) is calling on the US to make a "clean break" in its strategy for both Iraq and the wider Middle East region. In a new report...