Nusrat al-Rubaie, loyalist to Muqtada al-Sadr delivers a message following the meeting in Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2006. Lawmakers and Cabinet ministers loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr have suspended participation in parliament and the government to protest Prime minister Nouri al-Maliki’s summit with U.S. President George W. Bush. Poster in the background shows Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, Muqtada’s late father. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
Baghdad,Iraq
Lawmakers and cabinet ministers loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr have suspended participation in parliament and the government to protest Prime minister Nouri al-Maliki’s summit with U.S. President George W. Bush.
A statement issued Wednesday by the 30 lawmakers and five Cabinet ministers said their action was necessary because the meeting constituted a “provocation to the feelings of the Iraqi people and a violation of their constitutional rights.” The statement did not explain that claim.
Suspected insurgents attacked the police headquarters in downtown Baqouba, sparking a clash with police that left five of the attackers dead, police said on condition of anonymity, as they regularly do to protect themselves.
Coalition forces backed by U.S. aircraft also killed eight al-Qaida in Iraq insurgents during a raid near the city the U.S. military said.
The early morning attack was aimed at detaining Iraqis who were running a known cell of insurgents, the U.S. command said. The soldiers called in air support after coming under heavy fire from rifles and machine guns, the command said.