Sunni Arabs in Iraq's Anbar Province vowed yesterday to avenge the death of their leader, Abdul Sattar Abu Reesha, as Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki blamed al-Qaeda for the murder of the key US ally.
Thousands of angry and grieving mourners joined the funeral procession of the slain sheikh in Ramadi, capital of the western desert province, carrying his body 10km from his home to the local cemetery.
"Revenge, revenge on al-Qaeda," shouted the crowd of mourners. "There is no God but Allah and al-Qaeda is the enemy of Allah. Abdul Sattar is the pride of Ramadi."
Abu Reesha and three bodyguards were killed on Thursday when a powerful roadside bomb ripped through their convoy near the tribal leader's home outside the city.
The assassination came on the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and almost a year after Abu Reesha formed the Anbar Awakening Conference, a coalition of 42 Sunni tribes who joined forces with US troops fighting al-Qaeda in the province.
"We blame al-Qaeda and we are going to continue our fight and avenge his death," said Sheikh Ahmed Abu Reesha, who was elected new leader of the Anbar Awakening Conference soon after his brother's murder.
The Shiite prime minister was represented at the funeral by National Security Advisor Muwaffaq al-Rubaie, who condemned Abu Reesha's assassination.
"It is a national Iraqi disaster. What Abu Reesha did for Iraq, no single man has done in the country's history," Rubaie told the mourners gathered at the sheikh's house.
"We will support Anbar much more than before," he said. "Abu Reesha is a national hero."
In a statement issued by his office in Baghdad, al-Maliki said the attack bore "the fingerprints of al-Qaeda" and was "aimed at destabilizing the province of Anbar."
"We have set up an investigative committee to probe the circumstances of this incident and we are sure that perpetrators of this crime will be arrested and sent to justice," he said.
The killing of Abu Reesha is seen as a setback to US efforts to contain the violence raging through Iraq and to crush the Iraqi wing of Osama bin Laden's group, alleged to be key perpetrator of the bloodshed in the country.
The slow restoration of order in Anbar had been touted by the US military as one sign that its troop surge strategy was working.
US President George W. Bush, who on a visit to Anbar last week had shaken Abu Reesha's hand and praised his efforts against al-Qaeda, cited security improvements when he held out the prospect of a limited US troop withdrawal by next July in a televised address he made late on Thursday.
Meanwhile, a suicide bomber blew up his truck at a police checkpoint in the northern Iraqi town of Baiji yesterday, killing seven policemen, police said.
A police officer said the bomber detonated the explosives-laden truck when police stopped him and began to search the vehicle.
Baiji, an oil refining town, and its surroundings have often seen bomb attacks and kidnappings of workers and truck drivers.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese