The Common Ills: 6 dead, 15 injured -- and Iraq breaks apart?

Violence continues in Iraq. National Iraqi News Agency reports a Shirqat playground bombing left 1 athlete dead and six more injured, there was two assassination attempts near Tirkit (Governor Ahmed Abdullah of Salahaddin Province -- who apparently survived -- and Police Director Shakir Aanqood -- who apparently survived) and late last night 1 Sahwa was killed in a Tikrit attack. Alsumaria notes that the Associate Director of the Kirkuk Anti-Crime Unit in the police force was targeted but survived; however, three of his family members were left injured. Alsumaria also reports a Mosul armed clash left two bystanders injured, 1 civilian was shot dead in Kirkuk, a Haj Ali home bombing (targeting the home of Capt Ihsan Jassim Abdullah, intelligence officer with the police) left two people injured, two of Nouri's Tigris Operation Command were injured in a Kirkuk shooting, and Ayad Allawi's Iraqiya is denouncing an attack last night in Wasit Province which killed 3 of its members. All Iraq News quotes from the Iraqiya statement:

Three of the supporters of the Iraqiya Alliance were assassinated on last Friday in Wasit province by weapons with silencers.
As usual, the security forces attributed the assassination to an unknown side which raises the question of whether the government is able to protect the citizens or not.
While condemning this assassination, the IA calls on the security forces to conduct an immediate investigation to reveal the culprits instead of joining the government in silence.

Alsumaria notes that the National Alliance leader Ibrahim al-Jaafari made nice with the reviled Saleh al-Mutlaq today. al-Mutlaq is a Deputy Prime Minister, supposedly a Ba'athist (unreformed) according to Nouri's Justice and Accountability Commission, and a member of Iraqiya. He stabbed Iraqiya in the back by refusing to honor the Cabinet boycott. He made things worse by pretending to speak for the protesters. The protesters responded yesterday in over six provinces by carrying signs and banners denouncing him and stating al-Mutlaq does not speak for them. Here's one sign they carried in Kirkuk.

The Iraqi Spring MC photo shows a red X across his face. In the Arabic writing on the photo, he's being called a traitor to the Iraqi people.

All Iraq News notes that Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi has said al-Mutlaq's actions are outrageous and he declares to al-Mutlaq, "Your attitude is unacceptable and does not serve your interests whatsoever; therefore, I call on you to reconsider your decision as we are tired of our experiences with Nouri al-Maliki since 2006. Maliki is not trustworthy to start with him on new negotiations, so we advise you to cut your relations with him." Tareq al-Hashemi is currently in Turkey because he didn't rub his crotch against Nouri's ankles the way al-Mutlaq did while whimpering like the dog al-Mutlaq is.

In December 2011, Nouri went after both Tareq and al-Mutlaq. Tareq refused to beg and cower so he was run out of the country and resides in Turkey. All al-Mutlaq has ever known is how to wet himself and beg. It's really not a smart move for Ibrahim al-Jaafari to cozy up to al-Mutlaq. No one likes a traitor and it's election time.

Al Mada notes that Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi has called for intensive measures to ensure a fair election. Adding to the need for such measures, Alsumaria reports that Governor Atheel Nujaifi was sidelined in Nineveh Province ysterday as the Electoral Commission met with Nouri's security leaders about the elections in Nineveh Province and avoided including Nujaifi. Nujaifi is a member of Iraqiya (the political slate that bested Nouri's State of Law in the 2010 parliamentary elecitons).

Alsumaria reports that the Legal Committee of the Iraqi Parliament declared today that they support the establishment of three federations within Iraq -- that would be the KRG in the north along with a Shi'ite section and a Sunni section. They state that this is a plan similar to what US Vice President Joe Biden proposed. It's not clear whether they mean he proposed it as vice president.

Joe Biden, as US Senator, supported a federation and felt this would be the easiest way for peace to come about. In his campaign for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, he made a promise that this idea would be dead if it wasn't supported. Did he go back on that promise as Vice President and propose it again?

Or are they referring to the plan he supported as Senator?

Apparently this has been discussed in Iraq recently with the US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs and it was also discussed in DC after the 2008 elections and after Biden became Vice President -- with Biden and the State Dept and this is the plan he was pushing as a US Senator.

In other news, Al Mada notes that Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's medical team in Germany has declared that he continues to improve, that he is reading and speaking as well as doing his rehab exercises.

He's been in Germany since December following a stroke (which took place immediately after he was visited by Nouri al-Maliki).

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