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MP blames Diala’s deteriorating security on Kurds, Iran

September 23, 2008 - 11:11:18

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq:  An Iraqi parliamentarian on Tuesday blamed Iran and the Kurds for the declining security situation in Diala, an accusation described by a Kurdistan Alliance spokesperson as an attempt to “add fuel to the fire.”

 

“Many plots are hatched against Diala province. Some of them come from the east through Iran’s Islamic Republican Guard Corps – Quds Force and others from the north through Kurdish militia groups that took possession of 27 percent of the province,” MP Mohammed al-Dayni from the Arab Bloc for National Dialogue told Aswat al-Iraq.

“Most of Diala’s residents are Arabs and Turkmen. The percentage of Arabs is 93 percent and Kurds 7 percent, with the exception of Khanaqin, where Arabs and Kurds are equal in number,” he added.

Criticizing the security operation in Diala, the parliamentarian said, “We wished it had included all without exceptions.”

“A total of 800 young men from Diala residents have been detained in violation of constitutional principles and we have a proof of that,” he noted.

Since early August 2008, Iraqi security forces have been conducting a wide-scale security operation, codenamed Bashaer al-Kheir (Promise of Good), in Diala’s cities and districts with the aim of tracking down armed groups in the province.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Kurdistan Alliance (KA), Firyad Rawunduzi, described Dayni’s statement as an attempt to “add fuel to the fire” and to create ethnic and religious tensions in the province.

Diala province, a mix of Sunnis and Shiites, extends to the northeast of Baghdad as far as the Iranian border. Its capital is Baaquba, 57 km northeast of Baghdad. It covers an area of 17,685 square kilometers (6,828 sq mi).

A large portion of the province is drained by the Diala River, a major tributary of the Tigris.Because of its proximity to two major sources of water, Diala’s main industry is agriculture, primarily dates grown in large Date Palm groves. It is also recognized as the orange capital of the Middle East.In January 2008 Operation Phantom Phoenix was launched in an attempt to eradicate the remnants of al-Qaeda network following the Diala province campaign between 2006 and 2007. 

SS (I)

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