US urged to move on Iraq

IRAQ’S Sunni vice-president has urged Washington to speed up the deployment of extra US troops to stop what he called “round the clock” killing.

Tariq Hashimi told the BBC that previous security drives had failed because they had too few combat troops. Hashimi, one of two vice-presidents, spoke after a bloody weekend that saw 130 people die in a Baghdad bombing.US and Iraqi forces are preparing for new joint offensive aimed at restoring security in the Iraqi capital.A command centre overseeing their efforts was due to start operations yesterday, but the actual timeline for implementing the security plan is not yet clear.Hashimi, Iraq’s most senior Sunni politician, said if promised troops did not materialise soon, the situation could deteriorate even further. He was also scathing about the Iraqi government’s own response to the violence, saying it was slow and unprofessional, while he blamed the increase in attacks on Iran, arguing that the recent bombings were so large a government had to be involved.Despite Hashimi’s call for a speedy deployment, it is still likely to be several months before the US and Iraqi governments have the extra troops in place, reports the BBC’s Andrew North from Baghdad.US President George W Bush announced last month that he planned to send an extra 21 500 troops to Iraq – most of them earmarked for the Baghdad operation.But Bush’s new Iraq strategy is set to provoke further heated debate in the US later yesterday, with senators beginning discussion of a non-binding resolution that criticises the proposal to deploy extra American forces to the country.President Bush is also due to present budget proposals to the Democratic-led Congress that will include requests for an extra $100bn for the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of 2007 and more than $145bn for the 2008 fiscal year.BBCHashimi, one of two vice-presidents, spoke after a bloody weekend that saw 130 people die in a Baghdad bombing.US and Iraqi forces are preparing for new joint offensive aimed at restoring security in the Iraqi capital.A command centre overseeing their efforts was due to start operations yesterday, but the actual timeline for implementing the security plan is not yet clear.Hashimi, Iraq’s most senior Sunni politician, said if promised troops did not materialise soon, the situation could deteriorate even further. He was also scathing about the Iraqi government’s own response to the violence, saying it was slow and unprofessional, while he blamed the increase in attacks on Iran, arguing that the recent bombings were so large a government had to be involved.Despite Hashimi’s call for a speedy deployment, it is still likely to be several months before the US and Iraqi governments have the extra troops in place, reports the BBC’s Andrew North from Baghdad.US President George W Bush announced last month that he planned to send an extra 21 500 troops to Iraq – most of them earmarked for the Baghdad operation.But Bush’s new Iraq strategy is set to provoke further heated debate in the US later yesterday, with senators beginning discussion of a non-binding resolution that criticises the proposal to deploy extra American forces to the country.President Bush is also due to present budget proposals to the Democratic-led Congress that will include requests for an extra $100bn for the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan for the rest of 2007 and more than $145bn for the 2008 fiscal year.BBC