Iraq Press Roundup

The liberal Al Ahali Newspaper highlighted the latest escalation of violence in Basra and Sadr City Thursday in a column titled "Give them jobs they will give up weapons."

It said it has been proved that poverty and joblessness are behind the latest events in Basra and Sadr City, problems that needed to be solved a long time ago.

"Tens of thousands of young men and family households don't have the least work opportunities. … Assuming they get the chance to work as carriers, they would only make $2 a day," it said.

The paper also said joblessness, caused by the challenges and delay in implementing projects, could result in an explosion of the people of Iraq.

The use of military methods is unsuccessful in eliminating militias, which have become a heavy burden, it said. It said the solution is not dismantling these militias to force them to disappear temporarily, but to rehabilitate the young and provide jobs through development projects.

"The people who carry weapons are our sons, brothers and relatives, and who are young yet very poor and deprived," it said.

The newspaper said the Iraqi government's problem is that it tried to deal with the problem while ignoring the reasons for it. The Iraqi government has to examine the reason people carry weapons when they don't know why and who they are fighting, it said. The young fight because of poverty and joblessness.

"One serious step by the government to eliminate corruption and start new projects will dissolve the militias," the paper said.

In a column with the headline "A delay in the political process is a delay to life in Iraq," the daily Al Sabah newspaper said Iraq is a state of institutions that needs laws in order to move the country and its people forward.

It said those who oppose the political process or delay it cause a delay in the circle of life.

It said those who oppose the political process want to recreate an Iraq without laws or a constitution and without elections or freedoms. The paper criticized opponents of the Iraqi political process, saying they don't have a strategic vision to rebuild Iraq, or an agreement among themselves to decide their agenda.

"Restarting the political process now will need more than five years; Iraq will again become a ground for challenges and chaos," it said.

Although the political process is unsuccessful and frustrating, it still benefits the poor who would be harmed more if the process were reset.