Sunnis

April 9, 2008 -- Despite the fact that John McCain has made the same mistake FIVE times in five months, his campaign continues to claim that John McCain misspoke when he confused Sunni and Shiite extremists in Iraq. After McCain referred to al-Qaeda in Iraq as a Shia group during yesterday's Senate hearing with General Petraeus, McCain's campaign said the senator "stumbled on his words and corrected them immediately."

The Great Mosque of Samarra, Iraq: The spiral minaret in Samarra. Samarra stands on the east bank of the Tigris 125 kilometers north of Baghdad. UNESCO named Samarra one of its World Heritage Sites. Photo by James Gordon (CC)    » read more »

18 March 2008 -- Iraq's main Sunni Muslim bloc has boycotted a conference aimed at reconciling differences among the country's rival political groups.

A spokesman for the bloc says it was not properly invited. He also says the bloc's political concerns are not being heard.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shi'ite Muslim, opened the conference Tuesday in Baghdad and called on all political leaders to support national reconciliation.    » read more »

18 March 2008 -- Iraq's national reconciliation conference got off to a rough start when large Sunni and Shi'ite blocs boycotted the meeting or walked out. The conference, hosted by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is designed to encourage political participation and dialogue among Iraq's divided ethnic and religious groups.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki opened the conference Tuesday in Baghdad with a positive review of the country's sectarian divisions. He said national reconciliation efforts had prevented civil war and stopped fighting between the Sunni and Shi'ite factions.    » read more »

08 November 2007 -- The U.S. military has released 500 Iraqi prisoners in a ceremony Thursday attended by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The prime minister urged those being released to help in the process of rebuilding the country. The ceremony took place at a sprawling U.S. military base (Camp Victory) near the Baghdad airport.

The U.S. military says some 2,000 Iraqis are still in U.S. custody. Sunni Arab leaders have complained that many of those detained by U.S. and Iraqi forces are Sunnis.    » read more »

30 July 2007 (By VOA News) -- Iraqi police say a car bomb killed six people in central Baghdad Monday, ending the brief drop in violence that came while Iraq celebrated its first Asia Cup football championship.

Authorities said at least 12 people were wounded in the blast in al-Tayran square, a transport hub in the center of the city.    » read more »