Iraq Press Roundup

The Al Rafidayn newspaper published an editorial Tuesday that Iraq could only solve its problem by creating a military leader establishing a dictatorship. The paper mentioned researchers who said this is a test balloon. Others, the paper said, agreed on the idea that any other solution to replace the current chaos would be for the Iraqis' benefit. Another group described the comment as being "ignorant."

Iraqi Institute for Strategic Studies head Falih Abdul Jabar considered the news to be a test balloon to see what the United States thinks about such an idea.

"It doesn't mean that it is an official who said it, it could be other sides to see how the U.S. or Iraq would react," he said. Jabar gave another probability by saying, "Maybe it is to encourage people to think seriously about finding a solution in Iraq." He didn't completely refuse to believe that this could be a "support to military leaders." Another option Jabar gave the paper is that it could be one of the Middle Eastern countries, like Jordan and Saudi Arabia, that are trying to push on that.

There is no way Iraq could have another dictatorship because "it would need someone to be stronger than everybody else. Today, the army and police are weak, the streets are controlled by the militias, plus the U.S. will not agree to that," he said.

Al Rafidayn also reported that the U.S. army announced that in Kufa, 93 miles south of Baghdad, it arrested a leader in the Mahdi Army, a militia loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr. A dozen other Mahdi Army members were arrested in Baghdad. The announcement said that "the people arrested have been involved in executions, holding attacks against the Multi-National Forces, and smuggling weapons from Iran to Iraq."

The statement said that "this person is a leader of a net of 200 Mahdi Army members and in charge of many assassinations against officials."

The paper also referred to the latest casualty figures regarding the security operation carried out by the Iraqi forces backed by the U.S. forces in Diala province since last June. The paper quoted Gen. Abdul Kareem Khalaf, the National Leadership Center's chief, saying that "420 terrorists were killed and 416 others were arrested during the operation in Diala, north of Baghdad." The paper also said that 10,000 Iraqi and U.S troops are carrying out the operation.

The Iraqi international Azzaman paper reported on its front page on the crisis committee meeting called by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki Tuesday with his selection of political leaders. The headline read: "The bloc's leaders meeting was replaced by a lunch feast." The paper went in to details as to say that Iraqi sources have described the meetings between the parties' leaders as a "cold (cuts) lunch invitation that was disengaged politically and had nothing to do with the current crises." The paper also said that the Accordance Front party members didn't engage in any political discussions. The Front has withdrawn its ministers and threatens to do so from Parliament. Sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Tariq Al Hashimi, an Iraqi vice president and head of the Front, didn't come to the meeting.

The paper also said two Shiite parties that have also withdrawn their ministers over disagreements with Maliki, the Sadr and Fadhila parties were not invited to the meeting, "fearing of escalation in the situation and incapability to solve the crisis." The Iraqi List, lead by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, was also not invited.

Kul Al Iraq paper reports on four car bomb explosions in the Sinjar district, north of Mosul. The explosions killed and wounded more then 400 people, with the toll rising.

The paper said the targets were members of the Yazidi religion, a minority Iraqi group living in Mosul city. The police sources confirmed that more than 200 people were killed and 200 more were wounded in the four bombings.

"Residents witnessed that U.S. helicopters were participating in carrying the wounded to hospitals," the paper said.

The paper reported on a car bomb in Hilla, south of Baghdad, that killed two and wounded seven. The target was a local judge.

Also in Hilla, Khalil Al Athari, a former high-ranking Baath Party member, was assassinated.