WASHINGTON – Commanders yesterday announced a breakthrough peace pact in Fallujah that will allow a new Iraqi force commanded by a former general in Saddam Hussein’s Republican Guard to take over security in the hotbed city.
The Marine force participating in the month-long siege of Fallujah began withdrawing from some offensive positions in southeastern parts of the city. It was being replaced by members of the newly created Fallujah Protective Army, which took over some checkpoints and raised the new Iraqi flag.
A similar deal was in the works last night in the city of Najaf, where renegade Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr led a violent revolt against the U.S. occupation.
The arrangement in Najaf calls for Sadr’s al-Mahdi Army to leave the city in return for a U.S. promise that an Iraqi force would move in to provide security for holy sites. Legal action against the radical cleric will be put on hold until Iraq holds elections.
All sides cautioned, however, that no deal has been struck yet and Sadr delivered a sermon ranting at the United States as the “enemy of Islam.”
Commanders also cautioned the situation in Fallujah remains volatile. Two Marines were killed by a suicide bomber when their patrol checking a highway for roadside bombs was attacked.
The attack brought the death toll for U.S. forces to 136 for April – making it the bloodiest month in the Iraq war.
The Fallujah arrangement calls for the formation of a 1,100-man force made up of carefully vetted former Iraqi officers and enlisted men that would be placed under the command of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
The unit would be commanded by Gen. Jassim Mohammed Saleh, a former Republican Guard commander who was seen wearing his old regime uniform as he shook hands with Marine commanders.
HOW THE TRUCE WORKS
* Marines pull back from inside the city, but still maintain a strong presence outside.
* A new 1,100-member Fallujah Protective Army (FPA) gradually assumes control of checkpoints and patrols sections of city.
* FPA will be made up of former Iraqi army officers and enlisted men from Fallujah area.
* FPA will be under the command of 1st Marine Expeditionary Force