Al-Maliki vows to end violence

Al-Maliki vows to end violence
Severed heads again found in banana box.

Published Tuesday, June 6, 2006

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki pledged today to push ahead with efforts to curb rampant sectarian and militia violence after a series of brazen attacks, including the kidnappings of 50 people in broad daylight in Baghdad.

Police, meanwhile, found nine severed heads in fruit boxes in a village northeast of the capital, which followed a similar grisly discovery there on Saturday.

Al-Maliki also said his government was asking the U.S. military about two incidents that involved the killing of civilians - a Nov. 19 alleged massacre at Haditha and the deaths of about a dozen people in the town of Ishaqi on March 15.

"We still asking about these dossiers," he said. "We are still following it up, and we are still waiting for the results of the investigations. We have a committee investigating these painful incidents. We condemned these practices, as they are against human rights."

U.S. authorities are investigating the deaths of two dozen people after a bombing of Marines in Haditha. The military, however, cleared U.S. troops of wrongdoing in the deaths of up to 13 Iraqis in Ishaqi, a village north of Baghdad.

Al-Maliki, who announced a plan last month aimed at restoring order in Baghdad, acknowledged the deteriorating security situation in the capital and other areas but did not comment on yesterday’s abductions.

"The parties that are against the political process have increased their bloody operations to derail and bring down the national unity government, but, God willing, they will lose," he said at a news conference.

He also said his security plan for Baghdad had been ratified and would soon be implemented, and he said another plan was in the works for volatile Diyala province. "The security situation is complicated," he said, citing unspecified interference. "Yes, the mission is hard and tough, but we have short and long-term plans to fight and defeat terrorists and ensure security."

A major Sunni Arab political party, meanwhile, accused the Interior Ministry of trying to cover up police involvement in the raid in which gunmen wearing police uniforms descended upon bus stations in Baghdad and began randomly grabbing people, including travelers, merchants and vendors.