Iraq mulls amnesty offer to insurgents [View All]

The Iraqi government is preparing a national reconciliation initiative that could include a conditional amnesty offer and negotiations with some armed insurgent groups to be implemented alongside a tougher security plan.

Senior Iraqi officials on Tuesday said the initiative aimed to capitalise on the elimination of al-Qaeda leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and the completion of the new national unity government that includes leaders from the Sunni Arab community that dominates the insurgency.

It will be combined with massive new security operations. Nuri al-Maliki, the prime minister, is set to launch this week a crackdown in the capital, deploying tens of thousands of troops and imposing a night-time curfew.

A statement from Mr Maliki on Tuesday said “the raids during this plan will be very tough...because there will be no mercy towards those who show no mercy to our people”, according to news agency reports from Baghdad.

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