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COPYRIGHT 2005 United Press International
Byline: PAMELA HESS
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- The minority Sunni members of the Diyala Provincial Council in Iraq have boycotted it to protest a massive raid conducted by the Interior Ministry's special police commandos, fanning the flames of sectarian division.
Iraq's interior ministry is controlled by a Shiite, and is considered by many Sunnis to be targeting them for arrest and abuse, retribution for years of Shiite persecution under Saddam Hussein.
There is strong pressure on the Interior Ministry from Shiites to crack down on the largely Sunni insurgency. On Friday, two Shiite mosques were bombed during prayers, killing at least 70 and wounded at least another 100.
Interior ministry forces are prohibited from involvement in Shiite militias like the Badr Brigade. However, anecdotal evidence of targeted and unsanctioned violence against Sunnis from cities across Iraq suggests Badr or other rogue elements have a presence throughout the ministry.
On Sunday, a U.S. Army unit commandeered an interior ministry jail after finding nearly 170 prisoners being held, many with signs of malnourishment and physical abuse. The prisoners were nearly all Sunnis. Sunni political groups -- as well as a United Nations official -- have called for an independent investigation into interior ministry jails. The ministry announced it would investigate the matter...
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