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Reuters Sunni bloc quits as bombs kill over 70 By Mariam Karouny and Peter Graff 2 hours, 41 minutes ago BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The main Sunni Arab political bloc quit the Iraqi cabinet on Wednesday, plunging the government into crisis on a day when suicide bombers killed more than 70 people with massive strikes in the capital.
Click Here The Sunni Accordance Front said its five cabinet members and deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zobaie would resign from Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government. "This is probably the most serious political crisis we have faced since the passage of the constitution. If unresolved the implications are grave," the remaining deputy prime minister, Barhim Salih, a Kurd, told Reuters. Maliki's office said the premier regretted the decision and would remain in "permanent contact" with all parties, including the Front. Fifty of Wednesday's dead were killed when a suicide bomber in a fuel truck packed with explosives targeted motorists at a petrol station, police said. Another suicide bomber killed 20 people outside a popular ice cream shop across town. The Accordance Front said it was quitting Maliki's coalition because he had failed to meet about a dozen demands, including granting the Sunni bloc a greater say in security matters. Those standing down include the ministers of culture, women, planning, and higher education, and the junior foreign affairs minister. Their withdrawal may have little practical effect on a government already paralyzed by infighting. The Shi'ite bloc of radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr withdrew in April. Luring the large Sunni bloc into government was hailed as a major achievement when Maliki took power last year, and losing it is a blow to reconciliation efforts. "Democracy is hard," said US embassy spokesman Phil Reeker. It's frustrating for us, it's frustrating for them, it's frustrating for the Iraqi people." Haidar al-Ibadi, a parliamentarian close to Maliki, told Reuters the Front was trying to persuade the Americans to withdraw support for the prime minister. "They are sending a message to Washington that Nuri al-Maliki is no longer accepted and trying to bring political process to square one. Washington has been hoping that the inclusion of Sunni Arabs in the Shi'ite-dominated government would gradually lead to an end to insurgency and sectarian strife. But laws aimed at reconciliation have not been passed and attacks continue. The Sunni Front's deputy president, Tareq al-Hashemi, will remain in office for now, as will Sunni Arab Defence Minister Abdel Qader Jassim. The Front's 44 members also remain in the 275-seat parliament, which is on recess until September. TALKS PLANNED Salih, the Kurdish deputy prime minister, told Reuters plans were under way for a summit of Iraq's main factions in the next few days, seeking a new, more stable accord. "The crisis is grave and its implications should not be underestimated, but I hope it offers an opportunity to address the causes of political instability afflicting this country." Hashemi told reporters the Front was still open to talks and could return to government "if they introduce reforms." In Baghdad's Mansour district, police said the suicide bomber had lured motorists queuing for petrol before exploding the fuel truck which killed 50 people and injured 60. An hour earlier a suicide bomber blew up his vehicle near a popular ice cream parlor in a bustling commercial area of Baghdad's Karrada district. That attack also took place near a petrol station, which may have been the target. Large numbers of Iraqis often queue for fuel, making them vulnerable to insurgent strikes. Political setbacks in Iraq could also hurt US President George W Bush, who faces a showdown in Congress next month when his ambassador and top Iraq commander give a progress report on his "surge" strategy of sending 30,000 extra troops this year. The military reported that four more soldiers had been killed on Tuesday, July's last day, taking the month's toll to 78, the lowest since last November unless it rises further. "The surge has done what we wanted it to do in terms of bringing down the violence," said the US embassy's Reeker. "The hardest part is taking advantage of these security gains to move the political process forward."
Burnt vehicles are seen at the scene of a car bomb attack in Baghdad August 1, 2007. A suicide car bomb killed 15 people and wounded 20 others in the mainly Shi'ite Karrada district of central Baghdad on Wednesday, police said.
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