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Crisis in Iraq: Iraqi PM Maliki Rejects US Calls for Talks With Sunnis
06/17/20140
Violent sectarian tensions in Iraq between the nation's ruling Shiite groups and Sunni militants advancing in the north are threatening to throw the country back into the grip of civil war.
On June 14, hundreds of young Iraqis rallied to answer a call-to-arms by the nation's top Shiite cleric in fighting militant forces spearheaded by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), an al Qaeda splinter group, that has seized swathes of the country in recent days. ISIS, which wants to establish an Islamic caliphate in an area of Iraq and neighboring Syria, began a lightning advance when it overran the country's second largest city of Mosul on June 10.
On June 11, it stormed ruler Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit and Iraq's biggest oil refinery town Baiji, then went on to take the towns of Saadiyah and Jalawla in Diyala province near the Iranian border.
The militants' sudden gains in the country have spooked the international community. In particular, the US, which only left the country in 2011 after an eight-year occupation. Meanwhile neighboring Shiite powerhouse, Iran, is even thinking of cooperating with longtime foe, the US, to help Iraq, a mutual ally, mount a counter attack.
Keep up to date on the latest as the story progresses on VICE News' live blog:
Tuesday 6/17 5:31 PM
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki is rejecting US calls for talks with Iraq's Sunnis, blaming violence on Saudi-fueled sectarian violence, according to a report from Reuters. The report quotes an official Iraqi statement: "We hold them responsible for supporting these groups financially and morally, and for the outcome of that - which includes crimes that may qualify as genocide: the spilling of Iraqi blood, the destruction of Iraqi state institutions and historic and religious sites."
Tuesday 6/17 2:37 PM
President Obama will meet with House and Senate leaders on Wednesday to discuss the intensifying situation in Iraq. House Speaker John Boehner, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have been invited to the White House, McConnell said today.
In statements on the Senate floor today, McConnell called for swift action to avoid threats to the US.
"The administration must act quickly to provide assistance to the Maliki government before every gain made by US and allied troops is lost, and before ISIL expands its sanctuary — from which it can eventually threaten the United States," he said.
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06/17/20140
Violent sectarian tensions in Iraq between the nation's ruling Shiite groups and Sunni militants advancing in the north are threatening to throw the country back into the grip of civil war.
On June 14, hundreds of young Iraqis rallied to answer a call-to-arms by the nation's top Shiite cleric in fighting militant forces spearheaded by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), an al Qaeda splinter group, that has seized swathes of the country in recent days. ISIS, which wants to establish an Islamic caliphate in an area of Iraq and neighboring Syria, began a lightning advance when it overran the country's second largest city of Mosul on June 10.
On June 11, it stormed ruler Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit and Iraq's biggest oil refinery town Baiji, then went on to take the towns of Saadiyah and Jalawla in Diyala province near the Iranian border.
The militants' sudden gains in the country have spooked the international community. In particular, the US, which only left the country in 2011 after an eight-year occupation. Meanwhile neighboring Shiite powerhouse, Iran, is even thinking of cooperating with longtime foe, the US, to help Iraq, a mutual ally, mount a counter attack.
Keep up to date on the latest as the story progresses on VICE News' live blog:
Tuesday 6/17 5:31 PM
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki is rejecting US calls for talks with Iraq's Sunnis, blaming violence on Saudi-fueled sectarian violence, according to a report from Reuters. The report quotes an official Iraqi statement: "We hold them responsible for supporting these groups financially and morally, and for the outcome of that - which includes crimes that may qualify as genocide: the spilling of Iraqi blood, the destruction of Iraqi state institutions and historic and religious sites."
Tuesday 6/17 2:37 PM
President Obama will meet with House and Senate leaders on Wednesday to discuss the intensifying situation in Iraq. House Speaker John Boehner, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have been invited to the White House, McConnell said today.
In statements on the Senate floor today, McConnell called for swift action to avoid threats to the US.
"The administration must act quickly to provide assistance to the Maliki government before every gain made by US and allied troops is lost, and before ISIL expands its sanctuary — from which it can eventually threaten the United States," he said.
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