Egypt's top diplomat in Iraq

2008-10-06 09:36

Robert H Reid

Baghdad - Egypt sent its foreign minister to Iraq for the first time in nearly two decades in a sign of growing Arab acceptance of the country's Shi'ite-led government.

In the north, 11 people including women and children died during a US raid on a house in Mosul, where an extremist detonated a suicide vest - a stark reminder that Iraq still faces security challenges despite the drop in violence.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Sunday his first visit was aimed at helping Iraq face its "many challenges", including extremism, violence and sectarian hatred.

"And we hope that peace and security will prevail in Iraq," Aboul Gheit said. He told reporters Egypt was ready to open a new embassy and help with reconstruction of Iraq's oil industry.

It was the first visit to Iraq by an Egyptian foreign minister since 1990, when President Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and his regime was largely shunned by Arab governments.

The United States has been urging the mostly Sunni-run Arab countries to shore up relations with Shi'ite-led Iraq as a counterweight to the influence of Shi'ite-dominated Iran. But the Arabs were reluctant during the height of Shi'ite-Sunni fighting, which receded last year after the US troop buildup.

In recent months, leaders of Jordan and Lebanon have visited Iraq, along with the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, which has sent an ambassador. Regional powerhouse Saudi Arabia has remained on the sidelines, saying it was waiting until security improves.

'Egypt has lost a good citizen on Iraqi soil'

Aboul Gheit's visit was noteworthy, however, because of Egypt's traditional role as a leading Arab state and host of the Arab League. The Egyptians sent an ambassador to Baghdad in 2005 but he was kidnapped and murdered by al-Qaeda in Iraq.

"Egypt has lost a good citizen on Iraqi soil," Aboul Gheit said. "This has kept us a little bit away on the official level."

US officials are anxious for Iraq to bolster its ties to the Arab world as Washington prepares do draw down its 140 000 troops next year. US and Iraqi officials are negotiating a security deal with the Iraqis that they say would see the last American troops leave the country by the end of 2011.

Although violence is down more than 80% from early 2007 levels, US military commanders warn that security gains are not irreversible because Sunni and Shi'ite extremists have been battered but not defeated.

Those fears were underscored by the carnage in Mosul, the third-largest city where US and Iraqi forces have been trying to months to drive out al-Qaeda in Iraq and other Sunni extremist groups.

American troops came under heavy gunfire after entering a house early on Sunday looking for a suspected insurgent, the US military said in a statement.

As US soldiers returned fire, a man inside the house detonated a suicide vest, the statement added.

Residents live in fear

Five "terrorists" as well as three women and three children were killed, according to the statement. Two other children, including one who was injured, were found near the building and moved to safety, the military said. A weapons cache was later found inside.

"This is just another tragic example of how al-Qaeda in Iraq hides behind innocent Iraqis," US military spokesperson Rear Adm Patrick Driscoll said.

Iraqi police officials in Mosul said all 11 of the dead were family members, including a seven-year-old boy. The police spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to release the information.

Hospital officials said most of those who died in the Mosul raid appeared to have been killed by the exploding vest and not by gunfire.

Still, some Mosul residents blamed the Americans.

"Most of the Mosul residents live in fear because of such raids conducted by US forces, and even sometimes the Iraqi forces," said Thaier Ahmed, a 32-year-old teacher. "It is a horrible incident that has led to the killing of innocent people, including children."

A 35-year-old government worker, who identified himself only by his nickname Abu Tiba, said the raid raised questions whether "the blood of Iraqis is worth nothing to the US Army".

- SAPA