Soldiers wearing gas masks hold bottles containing seized chemical materials during the news conference in Baghdad yesterday.

AFP/Baghdad


The worst violence since 2008 hit Iraq in May, raising fears of all-out sectarian strife, as top political leaders met yesterday for long-delayed talks on persistent disputes that have paralysed the government.
Authorities have failed to bring the wave of unrest under control, and have so far not addressed the underlying political issues that analysts say are driving the attacks, while the UN envoy to Iraq has warned that the violence is “ready to explode”.
Figures for the May death toll ranged from more than 600, according to government ministries, to more than 1,000, according to the UN.
Either would make it the deadliest month since 2008.
An AFP count based on information from security and medical sources indicated that 614 people were killed and 1,550 wounded, while data from government ministries put the toll at 681 dead and 1,097 wounded.
The UN gave a significantly higher toll of 1,045 killed and 2,397 wounded.
Yesterday evening, top political and religious figures came together for a gathering that has been called for since late 2011, but continually delayed.
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a Shia, embraced parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, his main Sunni political rival, in a move symbolising an aim to reduce tensions in the country.
But no tangible measures were announced, and more meetings are to be held later.
“The situation in Iraq was very difficult, and on the edge of collapsing,” Nujaifi told journalists, adding that the country was on the verge of “civil war”.
“This meeting was very important, and we must stabilise the situation,” he said.
Long-running disputes between top politicians have paralysed Iraq’s government, and been linked by analysts and officials to increases in violence.
UN envoy Martin Kobler has warned that “systemic violence is ready to explode at any moment” if they do not resolve their disagreements.
But so far, efforts to bridge their differences have failed.
While violence mainly targeted the government and members of the Shia majority in the past, unrest in May was more wide-ranging. There were also major attacks on Sunnis, striking all aspects of daily life.
Bombings cut down worshippers in mosques, shoppers in markets and people mourning those killed in attacks. One Baghdad car bomb even tore through a group of people cheering a bride ahead of her wedding.
Although violence in Iraq has fallen from its peak at the height of the sectarian conflict in 2006 and 2007, when the monthly death toll repeatedly topped 1,000, the numbers of dead have begun to rise again.
There has been a heightened level of violence since the beginning of the year, coinciding with rising discontent in the Sunni Arab minority that erupted into protests in late December.
Members of the minority, which ruled Iraq from its establishment after World War I until Saddam Hussain’s overthrow by US-led forces in 2003, accuse the Shia-led government of marginalising and targeting them.
Analysts say government policies that have disenfranchised Sunnis have given militant groups both fuel and room to manoeuvre among the disillusioned community.
The government has made some concessions aimed at placating protesters and Sunnis in general, including freeing prisoners and raising the salaries of Sunni anti-Al Qaeda fighters, but underlying issues have yet to be addressed.

Qaeda poison gas cell busted in Baghdad: ministry

Iraq’s defence ministry said yesterday it has broken up an Al Qaeda cell that was working to produce poison gas for attacks within the country as well as in Europe and North America.
The group of five people built two facilities in Baghdad to produce sarin and mustard gas, using instructions from another Al Qaeda group, spokesman Mohamed al-Askari told a news conference.
The members of the cell were prepared to launch attacks domestically, and also had a network to smuggle the toxins to neighbouring countries, and further afield to Europe and North America, Askari said.