Iraq’s prime minister targets US senators over removal call

IRAQ’S beleaguered prime minister yesterday lashed out at US Democrats who have called for his removal, saying senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Carl Levin need to “come to their senses”.

Nouri al-Maliki, who is fighting to hold his government together, issued a series of stinging ripostes against a variety of foreign officials who have recently spoken negatively about his leadership.

But those directed at Ms Clinton, of New York, and Mr Levin, of Michigan, were the most strident.

“There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages, for example, Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin. They should come to their senses,” Mr Al-Maliki said at a news conference.

Meanwhile, waves of Shi’ite pilgrims descended on Karbala yesterday for a festival marking the birth of the ninth-century Hidden Imam. A woman making the 80km trek from Baghdad was shot dead by men in a passing car in the south-west of the capital.

More than a million faithful from around the world were expected to converge on the Shi’ite holy city for the celebrations, which reach their high point late tomorrow and early on Wednesday. The Shabaniyah festival marks the birth of Mohammed al-Mahdi, the 12th and last Shi’ite imam who disappeared in the ninth century.

Religious Shi’ites refer to Mohammed as the Hidden Imam, believing he was spared death and will return to Earth to bring peace and justice.

Six men were wounded as they walked toward Karbala with the woman who was gunned down, said Baghdad police officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to release the information.

Mr Al-Maliki launched his verbal counter-offensive in the final days before the American commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and US ambassador, Ryan Crocker, are due in Washington to report to congress on progress in Iraq since the introduction of 30,000 more American troops.

The Shi’ite prime minister said a negative report by Gen Petraeus would not cause him to change course, although he said he expected the general would “be supportive of the government and will disappoint the politicians who are relying on it” to be negative.