Iraq's Sunni leadership presented the majority-Shi'ite government yesterday with a 10-point ultimatum that they said would either end the violence or lead to a national strike and widespread street demonstrations.
It was the first time the Sunni minority has publicly offered conditions to end a bloody insurgency that has left thousands of Iraqis dead. However, it was not clear how much control the political parties have over the insurgents, who include foreign terrorists and disgruntled former members of dictator Saddam Hussein's military.
At the top of the list of demands was the resignation of the interior minister and his entire staff -- who are seen as leading a brutal anti-Sunni campaign through Iranian-trained Badr militias and a pro-Shi'ite police force.
The call comes amid a rise in sectarian killings, which Sunnis suspect are sanctioned by the government. Bodies of Sunnis, many blindfolded and shot in the head, are found almost daily. Speaking through Tariq al-Hashimi, who heads the Islamic Party within the Sunni-led Iraqi Accordance Front coalition, the Sunnis also asked that the Iraqi army take over from the police in the country's cities.
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