Annan condemn Iraq violence and appeals for calm

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan today urged calm Friday amid the “heinous” upsurge of violence in Iraq, saying the bloodshed is designed to widen sectarian divisions and further weaken national unity in the war-battered country.

The death toll from a suspected Sunni-Arab assault on capital’s Sadr City Shiite slum rose to 215 people today, a day after car bombs and mortar rounds marked the deadliest attack in the war as bombs killed 23 people in the northern town of Tal Afar.

Annan “condemns these heinous acts in the strongest possible terms,” according to a statement released by his spokesman, Stephane Dujarric.

Annan “urges the Iraqi people to heed the calls by political and religious leaders from all sides for calm and restraint to prevent an escalation of the situation,” it said.

Annan also called on Iraqis “to engage in a genuine national dialogue that addresses the needs and aspirations of all,” the statement said.

Annan said the attacks in Sadr City, elsewhere in Baghdad and in Tal Afar “cannot be justified by any cause and are clearly aimed at fomenting sectarian strife and further undermining the stability and national unity of Iraq".