Maliki Orders End to Raids Against Shi'ite Militants
By VOA News
04 April 2008
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has ordered his forces to stop raids against suspected Shi'ite militants.
Friday's statement also offered an amnesty to those who participated in last week's Basra violence, if they lay down their weapons. Mr. Maliki did not say how long his offer would stand.
A day earlier, Mr. Maliki said he intended to launch more crackdowns, like the recent one in Basra, against extremist gunmen in Baghdad and elsewhere.
The southern city of Basra was the scene of recent deadly clashes between Iraqi security forces and Shi'ite militias loyal to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
During the fighting, more than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers and police reportedly refused to fight, or abandoned their posts, according to Iraqi military and police sources speaking on condition of anonymity.
Separately today, Iraqi police said a suicide bomber has killed at least 20 people and wounded more than 20 others at a funeral north of Baghdad.
Police say the attacker detonated his explosives vest in a crowd of mourners at the funeral in Diyala province.
Meanwhile, a top United Nations official has appealed for significant funds to improve the humanitarian situation in Iraq.
U.N. Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief John Holmes says the funds will cover food, health, shelter, water sanitation and education. Holmes warns of a "very grave" humanitarian problem in Iraq without the added funds.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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