More insurgent groups are contacting president's to talk

Team Infidel

Forum Spin Doctor
More insurgent groups are contacting president's office for talks

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA
BAGHDAD, Iraq - (AP) Several insurgents groups have contacted
President Jalal Talabani's office in the past few days, with some saying
they are ready to lay down their arms and join the political process, the
presidential security adviser said Thursday.
Lt. Gen. Wafiq al-Samaraei told The Associated Press that "the calls
we received were different. The calls were also from different groups."
Al-Samaraei, a former military intelligence chief under Saddam
Hussein, did not say whether the groups were Muslim extremists or belonged
to Saddam's Baath Party.
Talabani said last weekend in Egypt he was ready for talks with
anti-government opposition figures as well as Baathists. He called the
Sunni-led insurgents to lay down their weapons and join the political
process.
"Many groups have called and some of them clearly expressed the
readiness to join the political process," al-Samaraei said. This shows that
"the initiative was welcomed by Iraqis."
In the western province of Anbar, members of some militant groups
told the AP that they had been in talks with Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad
Chalabi for about two weeks but would not say how they were going.
On Monday, al-Samaraei told Al-Jazeera television that he received a
call from a person who claimed to be a senior official of the resistance who
was interested in talks. He would not elaborate.
During remarks last Sunday in Cairo, Talabani said his offer to talk
with insurgents did not extend to members of Saddam's Baath Party unless
they agreed to lay down their weapons.
 
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