Makin' progress!
Thousands flee as Iraq violence deepens
Sunni leaders accuse Shi'ite militia death squads, some with links to government parties and operating inside the police, of a form of Balkan-style "ethnic cleansing." Tens of thousands of Iraqis have fled their homes in fear of sectarian violence that has worsened since formation of a US-backed national unity government two months ago, official data showed on Thursday.
A day after the United States issued a stern warning to both Shi'ite and minority Sunni leaders to match talk with action on reining in "death squads" and "terrorists" from their respective communities, the Migration Ministry said more than 30,000 people had registered as refugees this month alone.
"We consider this to be a dangerous sign," ministry spokesman Sattar Nowruz said.
A day after the United States issued a stern warning to both Shi'ite and minority Sunni leaders to match talk with action on reining in "death squads" and "terrorists" from their respective communities, the Migration Ministry said more than 30,000 people had registered as refugees this month alone.
"We consider this to be a dangerous sign," ministry spokesman Sattar Nowruz said.
Meanwhile, GOP lawmakers are cutting and running away from optimism on Iraq:
Faced with almost daily reports of sectarian carnage in Iraq, congressional Republicans are shifting their message on the war from speaking optimistically of progress to acknowledging the difficulty of the mission and pointing up mistakes in planning and execution. Rep. Gil Gutknecht of Minn. now says that conditions in Baghdad are far worse "than we'd been led to believe" and is even urging that troop withdrawals begin immediately. Said Gutknecht: "Essentially what the White House is saying is 'Stay the course, stay the course.' I don't think that course is politically sustainable."
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