Iraq's president has
denied his government has talked to insurgents,
contradicting an earlier claim by US Defence
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
"The Iraqi government has nothing to do with the
negotiations with insurgents," Jalal Talabani said
on Tuesday.
He spoke to reporters to mark the first anniversary
of the US handover of power to an Iraqi government.
There was no let-up in violence on the anniversary,
which saw Iraq's oldest lawmaker killed by a suicide
bomber. |
Iraqi President: Jalal Talabani |
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Dhari al-Fayadh, 87, died with his son and three
bodyguards when the car bomb hit their convoy in
northern Baghdad.
He is the second MP to die in renewed violence
following the installation of an elected government
in April.
More than 1,000 people - mostly Iraqis - have been
killed since the government was formed.
Negotiations denied
Mr Rumsfeld said at the weekend the US regularly
"facilitates" meetings between Iraqi officials and
insurgents.
But he downplayed their significance, saying "I
wouldn't make a big deal of it."
Mr Talabani flatly denied the claim, saying if the
Americans were negotiating with the insurgents,
"it's up to them".
The controversy is unwelcome news for US President
George Bush, who is delivering a major speech to
mark the anniversary, the BBC's world affairs
correspondent Nick Childs says.
Opinion polls in the US suggest support for the
presence of American troops in Iraq is dwindling,
with 56% of respondents disapproving of the
administration's Iraq policy.
Suicide bombing
Mr Fayadh, a tribal leader who had presided over the
first session of parliament before a speaker was
elected, was on his way to a meeting of the assembly
when his attacker struck.
"A vehicle packed with explosives and driven by a
suicide bomber was detonated alongside his two-car
convoy," an interior ministry source told AFP news
agency.
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