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This is the letter that was
sent by Dr Ismail Al-Jalili to the the Editor for the Independent British
newspaper correcting the serious error of Mosul identity. Similar letters
went to the Foreign Office and the American Ambassador in Iraq.
Letter to the Editor of the Independent
Sir
Today's article: US Threatens to cut aids to Iraq if new government is sectarian.
The above article, whilst excellent and factual in most respects, contains one serious deficiency ie that Mosul is a
Kurdish city.
Mosul is an Arab city and has been so throughout its entire history. It does contain a minority of Kurds and Turkomen
together with a large number of Arab Christians. Unfortunately, in their attempt to claim Mosul as a Kurdish city the
Kurds together with other sectarian militias loyal to the government have undertaken a campaign of ethnic cleansing
against the Arab majority and Turkoman minority under the eyes of the US forces and administration who are promoting
and abetting the concept of Mosul as a Kurdish city. This situation has already led to the large scale exodus of many
intellectuals and professionals from Mosul in addition to those who have been the victims of targeted assassination.
Repeated call for action by the British Government and the Foreign Office have gone unheeded.
Dr Ismail Jalili
Consultant Ophthalmologist
Stamford, UK
Reference: Statement for Mosul people to the UK:
http://www.almosul.org/Contents/Mosul_call.htm
To the US Ambassador, Baghdad
I write in respect of an article which has appeared in a British newspaper today counting erroneous information about
the City of Mosul. Below is a copy of my letter to the Editor of the newspaper and the article itself. The same concept ie
of Mosul being a Kurdish city appears routinely in the US media and nothing is been done to correct this misconception.
In the past 3 months I have attempted to highlight to the various the concerns of many of Mosul population following
receipt of the attached statement issued by a group of Mosul notables.
I would very much welcome your comments and feedback on these concerns and issues regarding Mosul, particularly
the targeted assassinations and the ethnic cleansing.
Additional Letters to the
Editor
Sir,
Anne Penketh's article in today's issue about US aid to Iraq contained a glaring error. She mentioned that Mosul was a
Kurdish city which must come as quite a shock to the great majority of its people who are in fact Arabs.
This city, from its inception across the river from Nineveh, has always been an Arab city. The relatively small number
of Kurds there are mainly new settlers. There has been a recent campaign by Kurds to claim this Arab city but your
diplomatic editor should know better than to be taken in by these utterly untrue and outrageous assertions.
Yours
Muzahim Al-Jalili
Bexley, UK
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The Article:
21 February 2006 14:34
US threatens to cut aid to Iraq if new government is sectarian
By Anne Penketh, Diplomatic Editor
Published: 21 February 2006
The US and Britain are pressuring Iraq's dominant Shia community to relinquish two key ministries in negotiations for a new government, as the country was hit by a wave of bombings that killed at least 24 people.
The US ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, warned yesterday that Washington might cut aid to the Iraqis if the new
government included sectarian politicians, pointing out that the US had spent "billions" in building up the police and the
army.
"American taxpayers expect their money to be spent properly. We are not going to invest the resources of the
American people into forces run by people who are sectarian," he said. He singled out the defence and interior ministries, saying they should be in the hands of people "who are non-sectarian, broadly acceptable and who are not
tied to militias".
Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, flew into Baghdad last night and was expected to deliver a similar message. A
Foreign Office spokesman said that while it was up to Iraqis to decide on their government members, "we are keen to
see these two departments in the hands of competent people, probably technocrats".
Last week the Shia-dominated interior ministry announced an investigation into reports that it had been running death
squads to wreak vengeance on Sunnis in reprisal for sectarian killings. There are fears that the killings by Shia
commandos wearing police uniforms may encourage more Sunnis to join the armed insurgency.
Yesterday, in Baghdad, a suicide bomber killed 12 people and injured 15 by setting off an explosive belt on a bus in a
Shia district of the city, while a bomb attack killed four people near Liberation Square. In the Kurdish city of Mosul, a
suicide attacker blew himself up in a restaurant packed with policemen eating breakfast, killing at least five people and
wounding 21, including 10 policemen, officials said. Two more civilians died when a car bomb exploded in Madain,
south-east of Baghdad. Eleven people were injured.
Shia leaders say they have the right to control key offices in the government after winning 130 of the 275 seats in
parliament in the elections in December. But the US and Britain say the secular, Kurdish and Sunni communities should
have a "significant voice" in a future government, which will be in power for the next four years, and are pushing for a
national unity government. It is anticipated that the discussions, which began in earnest this week, will take weeks, if not months, to produce a government.
The influential young Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, for example, opposes the inclusion of the former prime minister Iyad
Allawi, who, while in office, ordered the suppression of an uprising by fighters loyal to the Shia firebrand in the holy
city of Najaf. But Mr Allawi, who presented a secular list in the elections, has been supported by the British.
The Shia's choice for Prime Minister, the incumbent Ibrahim al-Jaafari, has come in for criticism because of his
ineffectiveness in the outgoing government. He acknowledged yesterday that there had been "objections" to his
candidacy, but challenged those opposed to him to state their reasons. He added that the formation of a new
government faced "obstacles," but not insurmountable ones.
Mr Straw is in Baghdad to help the process along, and will have talks with leaders who are struggling to set aside their
sectarian bias to form a government.
Britain's relations with Iraq have been complicated by the latest video apparently showing British troops abusing Iraqis
during a riot in southern Iraq, which has prompted two councils in southern Iraq to end
co-operation with British forces.
Mr Straw is expected to discuss the fallout with officials and British military commanders, although British diplomats
pointed out that the Iraqi police in the south were still co-operating with the British.
The prospects for a withdrawal of British troops is also expected to be discussed by Mr Straw.
Failure to establish a unity government that includes a strong role for Sunnis would fail to undermine the Sunni-dominated insurgency and could delay plans for a phased withdrawal of the 138,000 American troops and the 8,000
British soldiers in Iraq.
The US and Britain are pressuring Iraq's dominant Shia community to relinquish two key ministries in negotiations for a
new government, as the country was hit by a wave of bombings that killed at least 24 people.
The US ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, warned yesterday that Washington might cut aid to the Iraqis if the new
government included sectarian politicians, pointing out that the US had spent "billions" in building up the police and the
army.
"American taxpayers expect their money to be spent properly. We are not going to invest the resources of the
American people into forces run by people who are sectarian," he said. He singled out the defence and interior
ministries, saying they should be in the hands of people "who are non-sectarian, broadly acceptable and who are not
tied to militias".
Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, flew into Baghdad last night and was expected to deliver a similar message. A
Foreign Office spokesman said that while it was up to Iraqis to decide on their government members, "we are keen to
see these two departments in the hands of competent people, probably technocrats".
Last week the Shia-dominated interior ministry announced an investigation into reports that it had been running death
squads to wreak vengeance on Sunnis in reprisal for sectarian killings. There are fears that the killings by Shia
commandos wearing police uniforms may encourage more Sunnis to join the armed insurgency.
Yesterday, in Baghdad, a suicide bomber killed 12 people and injured 15 by setting off an explosive belt on a bus in a
Shia district of the city, while a bomb attack killed four people near Liberation Square. In the Kurdish city of Mosul, a
suicide attacker blew himself up in a restaurant packed with policemen eating breakfast, killing at least five people and
wounding 21, including 10 policemen, officials said. Two more civilians died when a car bomb exploded in Madain,
south-east of Baghdad. Eleven people were injured.
Shia leaders say they have the right to control key offices in the government after winning 130 of the 275 seats in
parliament in the elections in December. But the US and Britain say the secular, Kurdish and Sunni communities should
have a "significant voice" in a future government, which will be in power for the next four years, and are pushing for a
national unity government. It is anticipated that the discussions, which began in earnest this week, will take weeks, if
not months, to produce a government.
The influential young Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, for example, opposes the inclusion of the former prime minister Iyad
Allawi, who, while in office, ordered the suppression of an uprising by fighters loyal to the Shia firebrand in the holy
city of Najaf. But Mr Allawi, who presented a secular list in the elections, has been supported by the British.
The Shia's choice for Prime Minister, the incumbent Ibrahim al-Jaafari, has come in for criticism because of his
ineffectiveness in the outgoing government. He acknowledged yesterday that there had been "objections" to his
candidacy, but challenged those opposed to him to state their reasons. He added that the formation of a new
government faced "obstacles," but not insurmountable ones.
Mr Straw is in Baghdad to help the process along, and will have talks with leaders who are struggling to set aside their
sectarian bias to form a government.
Britain's relations with Iraq have been complicated by the latest video apparently showing British troops abusing Iraqis
during a riot in southern Iraq, which has prompted two councils in southern Iraq to end co-operation with British forces.
Mr Straw is expected to discuss the fallout with officials and British military commanders, although British diplomats
pointed out that the Iraqi police in the south were still co-operating with the British.
The prospects for a withdrawal of British troops is also expected to be discussed by Mr Straw.
Failure to establish a unity government that includes a strong role for Sunnis would fail to undermine the Sunni-dominated insurgency and could delay plans for a phased withdrawal of the 138,000 American troops and the 8,000
British soldiers in Iraq.
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