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Iraq Cabinet backs general amnesty law for detainees

Iraq's Cabinet has approved the draft of a general amnesty bill for detainees in Iraqi prisons, a measure that could go a long way toward reconciling Iraq's warring sects and factions.

But the measure approved on Wednesday will not be brought to parliament for debate until March at the earliest, said Sami al-Askari a key adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Many key draft laws -- including measures to share oil revenue and to allow some members of late Iraqi president Saddam Hussein's Baath party to hold government jobs -- have remained mired for months in Iraq's gridlocked parliament.

There was no immediate reaction from Sunni lawmakers who have in the past called for such a bill.

Al-Askari, who is a parliament member, said the amnesty would not cover those convicted of terrorism, corruption, crimes against humanity and kidnapping.

The draft will also not involve prisoners being held by US forces, said Sadiq al-Rikabi, another al-Maliki adviser.

Both the Iraqi government and the US military each hold more than 20,000 prisoners detained since the US-led invasion of 2003.

It was not clear how many prisoners might be affected by the proposed ban. Al-Askari estimated that "80 percent of those held in Iraqi prisons are there for terrorist crimes, therefore the amnesty would be for a limited number."

The Cabinet vote came as US officials forecast less violence in Iraq next year, despite a planned reduction of US troops.

The combination of more Sunni fighters in the Iraqi army and a recent backlash against militants will allow US-led troops to leverage their ability to subdue violent areas, according to US military spokesman Major General Kevin Bergner.

"Those forces will help coalition forces fight above their weight. They will help offset the reduction in coalition numbers," he told reporters.

The Bush administration plans to withdraw 30,000 US troops from Iraq by July, a reduction which would put the US force level there at about 135,000.

In northern Iraq, Kurdish officials have delayed for six months the explosive issue of a referendum to decide if the oil-rich city of Kirkuk will become part of their self-rule area or remain under control of the Shiite-dominated central government.

There was no immediate comment from the Iraqi government in Baghdad, but the referendum was widely expected to be delayed by months.

Meanwhile, the US military said an insurgent killed last month has been identified as a senior leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq and a former associate of its late leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was slain by US forces last year.

Abu Abdullah, also known as Muhammad Sulayman Shunaythir al-Zubai, was killed by coalition forces north of Baghdad on Nov. 8.

He was described in a military statement as "an experienced bomb maker and attack planner who coordinated numerous attacks on Coalition and Iraqi forces over the past three years, using a variety of improvised explosive devices combined with small-arms fire."

The US military said two soldiers were killed during fighting on Wednesday in Nineveh province in the north.
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