Thread: Archive Latest News - Think Tank - 16/08/07 - 03/11/07

French FM apologises for Iraqi PM criticism

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner publicly apologised Monday "for having interfered in Iraqi affairs" for suggesting that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki stand down.

"If the prime minister wants me to excuse myself for having interfered in Iraqi affairs in such a direct way, then I do so willingly," Kouchner -- who visited Baghdad on August 19-21 -- said on French radio station RTL.

Maliki on Sunday demanded an official apology from the French government after Kouchner indicated, in the online edition of the US magazine Newsweek, that the embattled Shiite prime minister had to go.

"I just had (US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice) on the phone 10 or 15 minutes ago, and I told her, 'Listen, he's got to be replaced,'" Kouchner was quoted as telling Newsweek.

"Many people believe the prime minister ought to be changed. I don't know if that will go through, though, because it seems President (George W.) Bush is attached to Mr Maliki. But the government is not functioning."

Maliki angrily demanded an apology from France, saying: "In the past you backed the former (Saddam Hussein) regime. Today we were happy with you and then you decided to support the former regime's loyalists."

Speaking on Monday, Kouchner said: "I believe that he (Maliki) did not understand, or that I did not stress enough that these had been remarks that I had heard from my Iraqi interlocuteurs."

While expressing his apologies, Kouchner added: "I am not alone in making some criticism in the face of a hotbed of tension and daily outrages that anger the world."

"I should have said, once again, and I repeat it, that these were remarks held by my interlocuteurs that I had just come from hearing. If they had been misinterpreted, I am sorry."

Kouchner's trip to Baghdad signalled France's readiness, under its new president Nicolas Sarkozy, to become more engaged in Iraq, after Paris and Washington bitterly fell out over the US-led invasion in March 2003.

In an op-ed article Monday in the International Herald Tribune newspaper, Kouchner said France was ready to act as a mediator in Iraq, arguing that there could only be a political solution, not a military one.

He appealed for the United Nations and Iraq's neighbours to take a more active role, saying: "The methods used to build a secure and democratic Iraq have failed."

French FM apologises for Iraqi PM criticism | Iraq Updates

Iraq Sunnis say deal won't end boycott

A new political accord between Iraq's main Sunni Arab, Shi'ite and Kurdish leaders will not be enough to lure boycotting Sunni Arabs back into the government, a spokesman for the biggest Sunni Arab bloc said on Monday.

In a rare positive political development, Sunni Arab Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi joined Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and other leading Shi'ite and Kurdish politicians to announce late on Sunday that they had agreed on key issues.

Although they did not announce details, they said they had agreed on a mechanism for releasing detainees, the text of a law on distributing oil revenue and measures to readmit former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath Party to public life.

All of those were key demands of the Sunni Arab bloc, the Accordance Front, which triggered a political crisis by pulling its six ministers out of Maliki's government on August 1. Hashemi is a member of the Front but did not resign his post.

But Saleem al-Jubouri, a leading Front member of parliament and spokesman, said the deal reached on Sunday would not by itself be enough to lure the ministers back into the cabinet.

"We are not boycotting political dialogue, but this does not mean that we are returning to the government," he told Reuters.

"Yesterday's agreement covered a number of issues ... but we are waiting for action on the ground."

Political leaders in Iraq have announced broad agreements in the past but have struggled to implement them or hammer out details.

Jubouri said the most progress was made on the issue of rehabilitating Baath Party members, and good steps were also taken on setting up a way to free detainees, tens of thousands of whom are held in U.S. and Iraqi jails without charge.

SEPTEMBER REPORT

Many of the detainees and Baath Party members are Sunni Arabs who feel persecuted by Maliki's Shi'ite-led government. The Sunnis are also concerned about the oil law because their provinces have far less oil than Shi'ite and Kurdish regions.

The issues are some of the main benchmarks that Washington has set for Maliki's government to take steps toward sectarian reconciliation, tests that U.S. officials have said the Iraqis were failing.

Sunday's deal will give U.S. ambassador Ryan Crocker at least some good news to deliver when he reports back to Washington around September 11 along with the top U.S. general in Iraq, David Petraeus, in a pivotal moment for U.S. policy.

U.S. officials had been suggesting for weeks that Petraeus would give a fairly upbeat assessment of security in Iraq since Washington sent 30,000 extra troops this year, but Crocker would have little progress to report on the political front.

Last week Crocker called Maliki's government's progress "extremely disappointing." Leading U.S. Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin said Maliki should be replaced, but President George W. Bush said he still supported him.

Maliki lashed out at Clinton and Levin by name on Sunday, accusing them of treating Iraq "as if it were one of their villages."

Iraq Sunnis say deal won't end boycott | Iraq Updates

Iraqi leaders vow to boost national reconciliation
Shiite, Sunni, Kurdish leaders agree to ease restrictions on former members Baath party.

Iraq's top Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish leaders vowed Monday to boost national reconciliation by agreeing to resolve key disputed issues that have thrown the war-ravaged country in a political turmoil.

The leaders agreed to ease restrictions on former members of Saddam Hussein's Baath party to help them join government ministries, to hold provincial elections -- a key demand of Washington -- and help security forces in stopping the bloodshed, President Jalal Talabani's office said.

The latest effort to pull Iraq from the political crisis comes amid intense pressure from American leaders and two weeks before top US officials in Iraq -- ambassador Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus, head of the coalition forces -- present their much-awaited report on Iraq to the US Congress.

Embattled Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a Shiite; Talabani, a Kurd; Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi; Shiite Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi; and Massud Barzani, president of the semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region, made a rare television appearance after Talabani's office released the statement.

"After a series of meetings by political leaders in the circumstances that our country is passing through, they have decided to make serious efforts to find solutions to overcome the political and security crisis in Iraq," the statement said.

It said the five leaders agreed to accept the Reconciliation and Accountability Law "to guarantee justice and transparency to all."

The law, yet to be approved by the parliament, replaces the de-Baathification law and aims to facilitate the former members of Saddam's Baath party in joining government and military services.

The return of former Baathists who have no criminal records to public life has been a strong demand of Iraq's main Sunni Arab political bloc, the National Concord Front.

The Front boycotted Maliki's Shiite-led government on August 1, paralysing the country's political progress.

The statement also said that leaders had decided to encourage sharing of government jobs equally among all the three communities.

"The leaders agreed to hold provincial elections and to continue dialogue over other disputed issues such as constitutional reforms and the oil law," the statement said.

Washington has insisted that provincial elections and passage of the oil law are among the key cornerstones needed to achieve progress and reconciliation in Iraq.

The oil law, which has been approved by the cabinet, aims to distribute oil revenues among all the provinces in a fair manner.

The leaders also agreed to stop the "deterioration of security and to work with the multinational forces in fighting terrorists and militias..." the statement added.

The White House on Sunday hailed the pledges from the Iraqi leaders as "an important symbol" of their readiness to work on behalf of all Iraqis.

"We congratulate Iraq's leaders on the important agreement reached today in Baghdad. Today's agreement is an important symbol of their commitment to work together for the benefit of all Iraqis," the White House said in a statement from the Crawford, Texas ranch where President George W. Bush is on vacation.

Even as Hashemi appeared on television with Maliki and other leaders, it was not immediately known whether the Sunni Arab bloc of which he is one of the main leaders had decided to join the Shiite-led government.

Since the August 1 boycott by the Sunni Arab bloc, a growing number of US politicians have spoken out against Maliki, with some like presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton and Senator Carl Levin even calling for him to be replaced.

Last week, Clinton urged the Iraqi parliament to get rid of Maliki after Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the premier should go after paying a visit to the country.

"I share Senator Levin's hope that the Iraqi parliament will replace Prime Minister Maliki with a less divisive and more unifying figure when it returns in a few weeks," Clinton said in a statement.

An angry Maliki lashed out at the two leaders on Sunday, just hours before the announcement of the latest political initiative.

"They (Clinton and Levin) talk about Iraq as if Iraq is their property," Maliki told reporters.

They "have not experienced in their political lives the kind of differences we have in Iraq. When they give their judgment, they have no knowledge.

Iraqi leaders vow to boost national reconciliation | Iraq Updates

Iraq PM hits out at critics

The Iraqi prime minister, has replied to his US and European critics, by making criticisms of his own, including the ongoing killing of Iraqis by US soldiers.

At a news conference in Baghdad on Sunday, Nuri al-Maliki singled out Hillary Rodham Clinton and Carl Levin, both Democratic senators, saying they should "come to their senses".

Al-Maliki said: "There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages, for example Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin.

"This is severe interference in our domestic affairs. Carl Levin and Hillary Clinton are from the Democratic party and they must demonstrate democracy.

"I ask them to come to their senses and to talk in a respectful way about Iraq."

He said it was not acceptable for the US military to kill civilians during raids, a complaint he has made before.

Al-Maliki appeared stung by the recent series of critical statements about his government, including one from George Bush, the US president, who said he was frustrated that al-Maliki had failed to make progress on political benchmarks.

But Bush also said that he backed the Iraqi prime minister.

Al-Maliki's verbal counteroffensive comes days before General David Petraeus, the American commander in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, the US ambassador, report to congress on progress in Iraq since the introduction of 30,000 more American troops.

US policy towards Iraq could reach a turning point when Crocker and Petraeus give their progress report.

Crocker has said that the Iraqi government's progress was "extremely disappointing".

Clinton, a leading candidate to succeed Bush as president, joined Levin, the head of the Senate’s armed services committee, in calling for al-Maliki to be replaced as prime minister for failing to reconcile Iraq's sects.

US officials say that security is improving somewhat, but political reconciliation has stalled. Democrats, and some Republicans, want Bush to begin withdrawing troops soon.

French criticism

Al-Maliki also told the French government to apologise for comments reportedly made by the foreign minister. Bernard Kouchner is alleged to have suggeted that the Iraqi leader should step down.

Al-Maliki said: "We welcomed their foreign minister and we were happy with his visit, but they have to show us respect.

"We call upon the French government to apologise about this issue."
Kouchner visited Iraq this month in a highly symbolic gesture after years of icy relations with the US over its 2003 invasion of the country.

Kouchner said Paris wanted to "turn the page" and look to the future.
However, in an interview with Newsweek magazine, Kouchner said he told Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, that al-Maliki has "got to be replaced".

Sunni support

Al-Maliki also said on Sunday that the Sunni Arab Islamic party would join the Shia and Kurdish parties who agreed last week to support a national unity government.

Tareq al-Hashemi, vice-president of the Iraqi Islamic party, had initially rejected overtures from the four leading parties in al-Maliki's government, saying such alliances were not the answer to Iraq's political crisis.

Al-Maliki said: "Today there will be a joint statement, not from only the four parties but also the Islamic party. There will be five parties, not four. This final statement will include a summary of all points of agreement."

An employee in the Iraqi Islamic party's media office, however, denied that the party had joined the alliance or had any plans to do so.

Iraq PM hits out at critics | Iraq Updates

U.S. Falters In Bid to Boost Iraqi Business
Few Products Sold To American Firms

More than a year after the Pentagon launched an ambitious effort to reopen Iraqi factories and persuade U.S. firms to purchase their goods, defense officials acknowledge that the initiative has largely failed because American retailers have shown little interest in buying products made in Iraq.

The Pentagon thought U.S. firms would be willing to help revitalize the war-torn Iraqi economy and create jobs for young men who might otherwise join the insurgency. But the effort -- once considered a pillar of the U.S. strategy in Iraq, alongside security operations and political reform -- has suffered from a pervasive lack of security and an absence of reliable electricity and other basic services.

Iraqi officials have recently highlighted pending deals with retailers such as Wal-Mart and J.C. Penney, businesses that they said were considering purchasing Iraqi products from the few local factories that have restarted. But the two companies said last week that they are not in negotiations to buy Iraqi products, citing Iraq's uncertain future and the questionable viability of potential suppliers there.

Three officials who have worked with the Pentagon's Task Force to Support Business and Stability Operations in Iraq said in recent interviews that, although some factories have achieved limited success, the larger effort to link Iraqi industries with U.S. retailers has been a "failure."

In an interview last Friday, Paul A. Brinkley, the deputy undersecretary of defense in charge of the task force, acknowledged that promising opportunities with U.S. companies have slipped away as the war's popularity fell. So far, only one American company has agreed to purchase clothing from an Iraqi factory, in Mosul.

"I thought we would be further along at this point, but we have a lot of momentum building in terms of support and a lot of momentum building in terms of finances," Brinkley said. "America's economic might has still not been brought to bear in Iraq."

The task force, launched in summer 2006, also faces growing internal turmoil. In recent weeks, the Defense Department's Office of Inspector General began an investigation after allegations by two task force officials that Brinkley engaged in erratic behavior, public drunkenness, mismanagement, waste of funds and sexual harassment. The officials recently left the task force after returning early from a trip to Iraq and presenting Pentagon officials with a 12-page memo outlining the allegations. Investigators began interviews last week.

Brinkley declined to address the allegations, calling it a "personnel situation" that was going through official Pentagon channels. He said that the task force has been as "transparent and open as it can be" and that he has not been involved in any questionable workplace activities in his career. "I have never, ever, behaved inappropriately with any member of my organizations," he said.

The task force has had to shift its focus to retailers and other firms in the Middle East and Europe, Brinkley explained, because it has had little success persuading U.S. companies to buy Iraqi-made clothes, industrial equipment and other products. He is in the midst of distributing $50 million in U.S. taxpayer money to Iraqi factories, and task force officials said they plan to announce more factory openings and one international sales contract worth more than $9 million in the coming weeks.

Though officials who work with Brinkley say that he has made a valiant attempt to restart Iraq's former state-owned enterprises, the results have been modest, with just nine factories restarting -- and even some of those remain unable to produce goods because of spotty electrical service, insufficient training and other problems.

The task force's assumption from the outset -- one shared by top U.S. commanders in Iraq and senior leaders at the Pentagon -- was that jump-starting Iraqi factories would push young men into paying jobs and away from violence.

But, in the past year, only 4,000 jobs have been created in Iraq's former state-owned enterprises, according to the task force's data, far short of the stated goal in December of having more than 11,000 employees back at work this year. Less than 5 percent of the 200-plus Iraqi factories have been reopened. Brinkley said that he still believes that several could open this year but that progress has been slower than he expected.

"It's not as quick as we originally thought, but it is happening," said Robert Love, the task force's operations director. "We are just coming out of a very turbulent period."

Those results come against the backdrop of a grim overall economic picture. According to official Iraqi statistics, unemployment is estimated at 18 percent, with underemployment at 38 percent, but U.S. officials have estimated that the joblessness rate is much higher. The Iraqi government, according to a Pentagon report delivered to Congress in June, has made little progress in providing key public services such as water delivery and sewage removal, while the oil sector has struggled with security problems and the government's failure to establish a long-awaited hydrocarbon law.

Another problem, Brinkley said, is that Iraqi consumers have shown a strong appetite for imports, after years of having to buy Iraqi products under Saddam Hussein. Brinkley said one Iraqi leather factory stamps "Made in China" on its soccer balls to persuade Iraqis to buy them.
What Brinkley described as an early "groundswell" of support from U.S. companies has waned. Business experts said that was caused by the uncertain security situation, concerns that supplies could get cut off and the prospect that Congress could end the U.S. involvement in the war.

Mike Longo, president of Memphis-based Shelmar Inc., said he has signed a contract to buy about $10,000 worth of boys' shirts and jogging suits for his 51 stores in seven Southeastern states -- the only U.S. contract of its kind so far. Longo, a West Point graduate and an infantry officer for nine years, said he will put most of the clothes on the shelves of his unbranded stores this fall but will not emphasize their Iraqi origins.

"We were confronted with an opportunity that made economic sense for us, and we also think it's the right thing to do," Longo said, praising the quality of Iraqi clothing samples. "I think what the task force is doing is very worthwhile and deserves people's support."

Brinkley has flown nearly 100 business leaders and experts into Iraq -- for an estimated cost of more than $10,000 each -- to examine the factories and to consider helping in some way. Those who have taken the trip said they found some factories that were beyond repair and others that inspired them.

Larry Milam, a senior business analyst who visited Iraq in February and May, said the trips were "enlightening" and "motivating." Milam was a West Point classmate of Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq. He said he approached the task force because he wanted to help.

"I came back thinking that we definitely found some opportunities, and there was a chance to get some business going and get people employed and accomplish the goals of all of this, which was to get people an income so they don't need to accept money to plant an IED or fire a weapon at U.S. troops," Milam said, referring to an improvised explosive device. "We have tried to get products into the major outlets with whom we work, and, to be honest, we have not been successful. We have been given any number of reasons, but what it all boils down to is the uncertainty around the situation in Iraq."

That uncertainty is shared by companies that officials have said were ready to join the effort, such as Wal-Mart and J.C. Penney. "We are not in negotiations to sell these goods," Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said last week. Darcie Brossart, a spokeswoman for J.C. Penney, echoed that sentiment. "J.C. Penney is not planning any production in Iraq. However, we did speak to a number of people regarding manufacturing and gave them ideas on how to alter trade policy to advantage Iraq," Brossart said.

John H. Sununu, president of the consulting firm JHS Associates, said that he has been interested in the idea for more than a year. He noted that he has been talking to clients about acquiring Iraqi products or using Iraqi services but has not gained much traction.

"If all the companies were doing was for the short term, they could do it altruistically," said Sununu, a former Republican governor of New Hampshire and a chief of staff for President George H.W. Bush. "For the long term, there has to be some potential for it being a good business decision, as well. They're struggling with balancing their natural inclination to do good with their business inclination to have to do well."


U.S. Falters In Bid to Boost Iraqi Business | Iraq Updates

105 billions to execute project in Waste

Head of reconstruction committee of Waste province has announced the allocation of 105 billion diners to execute service and constructing projects in province within regions development and reconstruction pickup program of 2007.

She added that funds distributed between projects carrying out projects in water directorates, municipalities , roads and bridges, electricity , communications, healthcare, water resources, governmental gas factory, technical institute in Kut, technical institute in Suera, constructional planning and agriculture.

She stressed that committee determined in coordinating with technical and engineering staffs of directorates, to carry out all projects through period set for them in current year.

105 billions to execute project in Waset | Iraq Updates

EXTRA: US Attorney General Gonzales resigns - White House

Washington - Embattled US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has tendered his resignation, the White House confirmed Monday. The White House statement, coming after press reports which had cited senior administration officials about the development, said Gonzales, 52, would issue a statement at 1530 GMT, with President George W Bush to comment one hour later.

Gonzales had been appointed to the top law enforcement position in February 2005. He is one of the last remaining political backers from Bush's previous days as governor of the state of Texas.

The Attorney General had been in the centre of controversy for months over the sacking of eight federal prosecutors and alleged abuse of the country's anti- terrorism laws.

EXTRA: US Attorney General Gonzales resigns - White House : US World

US Attorney General Gonzales to step down - 2nd Update

Washington - The top US law enforcement officer, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, has resigned after months of allegations he was behind the politically motivated firings of federal prosecutors. Gonzales is expected to announce his resignation during a press conference at 1430 GMT Monday and US President George W Bush, who has stood by his justice minister, will make remarks later from his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

Gonzales has been under intense pressure to resign from Democrats and Congress and even some of Bush's Republicans who believe he has not been honest over his role in the dismissal of eight federal prosecutors. Democrats also allege he has abused the country's anti- terrorism laws.

Gonzales, 52, has been close to the president since Bush was governor of Texas and served as his top legal aid in the White House before taking over at the Justice Department in February 2005.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a longtime critic of Gonzales, said his resignation will not end the investigation into any potential White House role in the sacking of the prosecutors.

"Alberto Gonzales was never the right man for this job. He lacked independence, he lacked judgment..." Reid said in a statement. "This resignation is not the end of the story."

Senate Democrats in July called for a perjury investigation into Gonzales, alleging that he made conflicting statements during congressional testimony over the firing of the prosecutors.

Gonzales had also come in for sharp criticism for allegedly overstepping the bounds permitted in the anti-terrorism laws in permitting surveillance of US citizens.

Gonzales has also been the target of critics who believe he allowed the overstepping of US laws to so the government could monitor domestic communications as part of counter-terrorism investigations.

The New York Times first reported Gonzales' intention to leave and, citing a senior administration official, said the outgoing attorney general had submitted his resignation on Friday.

Gonzales is the latest to announce his departure from the administration and Bush heads into his final stretch in office. Bush's closest political advisor and deputy chief of staff Karl Rove announced earlier this month that he too was leaving.

Rove had also been the subject of allegations about a potential White House role in the dismissal of the prosecutors. Rove, like Gonzales, has been with Bush since his days in Texas.

US Attorney General Gonzales to step down - 2nd Update : US World

Iraqi Shiites and Kurds sign political agreement - Summary

Baghdad - In an attempt to push forward Iraq's political process, which is suffering a serious standoff, Kurdish and Shiite political groups have decided on a "new joint agreement," local reports said Monday. Meanwhile, government members announced the latest figures of prisoners in Iraqi jails, saying that at least 17,000 of them are followers of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

The government announced in Baghdad the agreement signed by the four main Kurdish and Shiite blocs, dubbed the "quartet." The deal aims at "opening doors before the blocs that quit the government," according to the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

But the agreement has been accused of further marginalizing Sunnis.

Iraqi Premier Nuri al-Maliki had said that the Sunni Iraqi Islamic Party, led by Vice President Tareq al-Hashimi, joined the agreement. However, shortly afterwards, one of the Sunni group's leaders denied this.

"Neither the head of the government Nuri al-Maliki nor anyone else, official or not, have the right to talk on behalf of the Iraqi Islamic party," said Omar Abdel-Satar al-Karbouly, a member of the group's politburo.

"The Islamic party did not and will not join the quartet," added al-Karbouly, although news reports said that the agreement had been signed by al-Hashimi.

Earlier this month, five Sunni ministers and the deputy prime minister from the Sunni Iraqi Accord Front announced their withdrawal from government.

In addition the non-sectarian Iraqi National List, which has 25 seats in parliament and is led by former premier Iyad Allawi, quit the government last Friday after weeks of boycott and constant criticism.

This last move has left al-Maliki's cabinet made up almost exclusively of Shiites and Kurds.

In April, six ministers of the movement led by al-Sadr resigned in protest at al-Maliki's failure to provide a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops.

Under growing pressure, al-Maliki called for crisis talks, but his call inspired little interest among Sunnis.

The talks, which ideally should have prepared the way for a more inclusive conference that would bring political factions to the discussions table, produced a new "moderate" government coalition.

The coalition, however, failed to impress as this "front of moderate forces" consisted only of the four parties which have been working closely together since the US invasion in 2003 - the Kurdish parties KDP and PUK, al-Maliki's Daawa Party and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council.

Meanwhile, a total of 56,000 Iraqi detainees are being held in prisons supervised by the Iraqi government and multinational forces, said Iraqi member of parliament Shaza al-Abousy.

Of that total number, at least 17,000 detainees belong to the movement of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

The Sadrists, largely based in an eastern Baghdad Shiite enclave called Sadr City, have been considered responsible for many acts of violence and are said to have strong links with Iran.

Sadrist parliamentarian Hamad al-Masoudy, commenting on the large number of detainees, said that most were held without trial and in some cases without being charged.

"Some of these were taken prisoners without an arrest warrant," al-Masoudy said. He added: "We have been trying through (discussions with) the government and the American forces to reach a solution to this case but our efforts have been in vain."

Al-Abousy, a member of the parliament's Human Rights Council, told the state-owned al-Sabah newspaper that 32,000 of those captured were rounded up from Baghdad after February's US-backed security plan was put into effect in and around the capital.

"The government gives great care to the cases of the detained. Thousands were released during the past few weeks," she said, adding that following inspections, "we became certain that human rights violations are absent from these prisons."

Her statement contradicts earlier reports that Iraqi prisoners face human rights abuses in addition to systematic harassment inside the country's prisons.

In other developments, the governor of Salahaddin province and his aide survived an assassination attempt Monday, a source in the governor's office said.

Two explosive charges went off consecutively a few minutes before the convoy of governor Hamad Hamoud al-Qaisi arrived on a main street in central Tikrit, 180 kilometres north of Baghdad. Two security guards were wounded in the attack.

The governors of Diwaniya and Muthana provinces were recently killed by gunmen.

Meanwhile, the US military said Monday that three US soldiers, including a marine, were killed a day earlier in attacks in the southern Salah Eddin province and the northern Anbar province. A US marine was also killed Saturday.

Iraqi Shiites and Kurds sign political agreement - Summary : Middle East World

US Attorney General Gonzales announces resignation - 3rd Update

Washington - The top US law enforcement officer, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, announced his resignation Monday after months of allegations he was behind politically motivated firings of federal prosecutors. Gonzales told reporters at a press conference that he informed Bush of his decision on Sunday and that his last day in office will be September 17. US President George W Bush, who has stood by his justice minister, was expected to make remarks later from his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

"It has been one of my greatest privileges to lead the Department of Justice," Gonzales said in a brief statement before walking away from the podium without taking questions.

Gonzales has been under intense pressure to resign from Democrats in Congress and even some of Bush's Republicans who believe he has not been honest about his role in the dismissal of eight federal prosecutors. Democrats also allege he has abused the country's anti- terrorism laws.

Gonzales, 52, has been close to the president since Bush was governor of Texas and served as his top legal aid in the White House before taking over at the Justice Department in February 2005.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a longtime critic of Gonzales, said his resignation will not end the investigation into any potential White House role in the sacking of the prosecutors.

"Alberto Gonzales was never the right man for this job. He lacked independence, he lacked judgment..." Reid said in a statement. "This resignation is not the end of the story."

Senate Democrats in July called for a perjury investigation of Gonzales, charging that he made conflicting statements during congressional testimony about the firing of the prosecutors.

Gonzales had also come in for sharp criticism for allegedly overstepping the bounds of anti-terrorism laws in permitting surveillance of US citizens.

Gonzales is the latest to announce his departure from the administration as Bush heads into his final stretch in office. Bush's closest political advisor and deputy chief of staff Karl Rove announced earlier this month that he was leaving.

Rove had also been the subject of allegations about a potential White House role in the dismissal of the prosecutors. Rove, like Gonzales, has been with Bush since his days in Texas. Rove has refused to appear before the congressional panels probing the case.

US Attorney General Gonzales announces resignation - 3rd Update : US World