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Backgrounder: The Debate Over Granting Amnesty to Iraqi Insurgents

Council on Foreign Relations

Author: Lionel Beehner, Staff Writer
June 22, 2006

Introduction

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has proposed to grant some insurgents limited amnesty and pardon those who renounce violence. The goodwill gesture, part of the prime minister's twenty-four-point program, aims to bring about national reconciliation and lure disaffected Sunnis into the political fold. But some U.S. politicians decry any attempt by Baghdad to make amends with insurgents who have American blood on their hands. The recent death of insurgent leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi offers the Iraqi government an opening to exploit a perceived rift between Iraq's homegrown and foreign insurgents. The offer of amnesty also coincides with Maliki's recent release of hundreds of Sunni prisoners and his decision to revise the draconian rules of de-Baathification, expected later this summer. Experts say these efforts are necessary to mend the Sunni-Shiite rift and negotiate a resolution to the three-year-old conflict.

How would amnesty work?

Amnesty would only apply to native Iraqi insurgents and their cohorts—bomb makers, safe haven providers, et al.—who have not targeted Iraqi civilians or engaged in suicide bombings. Foreign jihadis and so-called Iraqi "dead-enders" would not be eligible. How the government would differentiate among the various strands of the insurgency remains unclear. Amnesty would entail insurgents coming forward, turning over their weapons, and renouncing violence in exchange for the promise of immunity from prosecution or imprisonment. Iraqi National Security Adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie, speaking to CNN, says amnesty is aimed at insurgents "still carrying arms [who] might have done some minor mistakes in storing some arms or allowing some terrorists to stay overnight or... give shelter to some of these insurgents."

Would amnesty be offered to insurgents accused of killing Americans?

Probably, experts say. "Wars normally end with amnesties," says Stephen Biddle, a CFR Senior Defense Fellow.

Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.

Copyright 2006 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.