Insurgents fired mortars at a meeting where Iraqi leaders met to pick an interim national assembly yesterday, killing at least one in a brazen attack showing the problems the country faces on its path to democracy.
The Interior Ministry said three mortar bombs hit a taxi and bus station on the edge of the heavily fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, a few hundred meters away from the conference center, also wounding 17 people.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The three-day conference, attended by 1,300 delegates, was not affected and sessions proceeded as planned, although many delegates were startled as windows shook.
The attack, despite massive security, curfews around the zone, checkpoints and blocked streets illustrates Iraq's nightmarish security as politicians and religious leaders try to plot the country's stuttering road to democracy.
The Health Ministry said one person was killed and 17 hurt.
Clashes also broke out between police and gunmen in Haifa street in central Baghdad. There was no word of casualties.
The opening of the conference came amid sporadic fighting in the holy city of Najaf between Shiite militiamen and combined US and Iraqi forces after the collapse of peace talks on Saturday.
Five blasts echoed from near Najaf's holy sites after midday, but there were no signs US and Iraqi forces had launched an all-out offensive against the militia loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
The failed peace talks had aimed to end 10 days of fighting that has killed hundreds and threatened to undermine the authority of interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi.
Police chief Ghaleb al-Jazaeri earlier called a news conference and threatened to arrest local staff of all media outlets if both Iraqi and foreign staff did not leave Najaf.
He did not elaborate.
The political and religious leaders gathered for the conference in Baghdad will choose a 100-member assembly, or national council, to oversee the interim government until elections are held in January.
"Your presence here today is the biggest challenge to the forces of darkness that want to tear this country apart. This is not the end of the road, it is the first step on the way to democracy," Allawi said in opening remarks.
The conference has been beset by boycotts from key players such as Sadr and the Muslim Clerics Association, an influential grouping of Sunni religious leaders. Some Shiite leaders threatened to withdraw from the conference because of the fighting in Najaf.
The conference was due to open late last month but was delayed after the UN demanded more time for preparations. Some delegates taking part have accused the government of stacking the slate with Allawi supporters.
"The political parties in power now have the overwhelming majority of delegates. They left no room for independents," said Mohammed Bahr al-Uloum, a leading Shiite cleric.
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