THERE IS STILL NO PROGRESS ON POLITICAL RECONCILIATION, WHICH IS THE ONLY WAY TO GUARANTEE LONG-TERM SECURITY
Iraq's Shi'a Prime Minister blames Sunni Vice President for political stalemate. In an interview with an Iraqi newspaper, Shi'a Prime Minster Nouri al Maliki accused Sunni Vice President Tariq al Hashemi of blocking key legislation approved by Iraq's Shi'a-dominated parliament. Al-Maliki also suggested that the Iraqi Accordance Front, the parliament's largest bloc, isn't representative of the country's Sunni minority. "There are 26 laws that are blocked in the presidency council, and it is the vice president, Tariq al Hashemi, who is blocking them," Maliki said in the interview. U.S. officials continue to stress the importance of political reconciliation, however, little progress has been made. [McClatchy, 11/20/07]
US AGREES TO TALKS WITH IRAN ABOUT SECURITY IN IRAQ
U.S. accepts Iraqi proposal to hold new talks with Iran about the security situation in Iraq. The meeting would be the fourth round of talks between Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, and his Iranian counterpart. Two previous meetings ended with Iran rejecting U.S. allegations that Iran is supporting Shi'a insurgent groups in Iraq with bomb making material. "The Iraqi government hopes that the new round of talks among the three countries will be fruitful and yield tangible steps that lead to mutual understanding," Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a brief statement. [AP, 11/21/07]
DESPITE THE DROP IN ATTACKS, VIOLENCE CONTINUES TO RAGE
Car bombs and shootings kill many across Iraq while a half dozen bodies show up on Baghdad's streets. A car bomb in the Bayaa neighborhood of southwest Baghdad killed one person and injured six. In the west Baghdad neighborhood of Mansour, armed men opened fire, killing two computer engineers at a mosque. Mousa Jaafar, the director-general of geologic surveying, was killed by gunmen while driving in central Baghdad, police said. One of his bodyguards was killed and another wounded. Additionally, six unidentified homicide victims were found in the capital and a roadside bomb exploded in a village southwest of the northern city of Kirkuk, killing one Iraqi soldier and injuring five others. In Ramadi, a city in 70 miles west of Baghdad in Anbar Province, was hit by a suicide car bomb that exploded at a police checkpoint guarding a courthouse, killing at least six people in the largest attack on Anbar province's capital in months. Another 13 people were wounded. [LA Times, 11/21/07]
Two U.S. soldiers were killed and 12 injured when a helicopter crashed near Salman Pak, about 20 miles southeast of Baghdad. Initial reports indicated that the crash was not the result of enemy fire. A British helicopter also crashed southeast of Baghdad, killing two soldiers and seriously injuring two others, Britain's Ministry of Defense said. The cause of the nighttime crash was not immediately known [LA Times, 11/21/07]