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Kathleen Ridolfo

Also by Kathleen Ridolfo

May 07, 2008
Analysis | Foreign Fighters Continue To Wreak Havoc

A Sunni Arab tribal leader in restive Diyala Governorate announced this week that tribal fighters obtained Al-Qaeda records documenting the names of 6,000 suicide bombers who have carried out attacks in Iraq since the fall of the Hussein regime.
May 04, 2008
Iraq: Al-Sadr Refuses to Meet Baghdad Delegation In Iran

(RFE/RL) Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki dispatched a delegation of leading Shi'ite figures to Iran last week in order to present Tehran with mounting evidence of Iran's support for rogue militias in Iraq. But Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose militia continues to battle Iraqi and U.S. forces in Baghdad and other areas and who has been in Iran for months, refused to meet with the delegation.
April 23, 2008
Aide Downplays Al-Sadr Threat, Assails Iranian Role In Iraq's South

An official spokesman for Shi'ite cleric and militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr has signaled a reluctance on al-Sadr's part to order his Imam Al-Mahdi Army to fight the Iraqi government and distanced his group from elements in neighboring Iran.
April 22, 2008
Winning The War Against Al-Sadr

As the bloody clashes in 2004 proved, the Al-Mahdi Army will not go easily. RFE/RL analyst Kathleen Ridolfo says the Iraqi government must move quickly to win the support of Shi'a living in Sadrist strongholds.
April 21, 2008
U.S. To Push For Greater Arab Engagement

A meeting this week of global powers and Iraq's neighbors will test Arab concern over Iranian encroachment as Washington urges regional engagement with Iraq.
April 17, 2008
Christians Say Targeting Amounts To Genocide

Iraq's Christian community says it is being singled out by insurgents, in what some claim amounts to a campaign of genocide carried out under the noses of Iraq and U.S. forces.
April 14, 2008
Iraq: Awakening Councils Change Sunni Arab Insurgency

Are Sunni tribes still with the insurgency 'in their hearts'? (epa) U.S. military leaders have warned for months that awakening councils, formed by Sunni Arab tribesmen last year in several governorates to fight Al-Qaeda, may be infiltrated by Sunni Arab insurgents.
March 19, 2008
Not All Bad

On the fifth anniversary of the invasion to oust Saddam Hussein, RFE/RL analyst Kathleen Ridolfo says U.S. support for awakening councils is one reason Iraq is more secure than it was a year ago.
March 05, 2008
Iraq: Sunnis Say Iran Working To Solidify Economic Control

Ahmadinejad (left) with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad (AFP) Even before his foot touched Iraqi soil, Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad had much to celebrate.
February 26, 2008
Iraq: Turkish Incursion Threatens To Destabilize Domestic Situation

Turkish forces move into Iraq (AFP) Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari has warned that Turkey's military operation against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) could destabilize the entire region.
February 12, 2008
Iraq: Sunni Groups Vie For Control Of Western Region

The Sunni tribes' influence in Baghdad is growing (epa) Disputes are emerging in several Iraqi governorates between awakening councils and local administrators. The councils, formed by tribal leaders last year to fight Al-Qaeda, are demanding a greater role in the policing and governing of their areas.
February 06, 2008
Iraq: Does Government Crackdown Target Messianic Cults Or Opposition?

Have Iraqi security forces been used to quash political dissent? (epa) At least 50 people were killed in clashes last month in both Al-Nasiriyah and Al-Basrah that broke out after suspected followers of a messianic Shi'ite group attacked other Shi'ite worshippers and security forces.
January 09, 2008
Iraq: Awakening Councils Face Political, Terrorist Pressure

The Iraqi establishment is leery of the Sunni tribes' growing influence (file) (epa) The so-called awakening councils that have been formed in Iraq to fight terrorists are finding themselves under increasing threat from rival political and security groups and terrorists keen on curbing their power.
January 04, 2008
Iraq: Bin Laden Appeals To Muslims To Support Al-Qaeda

Osama bin Laden has called on Iraqis to unite under Al-Qaeda (AFP) In a 56-minute audio statement released on the Internet on December 29, Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden issued his most vocal criticism to date of Iraqi nationalist insurgent groups.
December 21, 2007
Iraq: Kirkuk Referendum Delayed By Six Months

Iraq's Kurdish officials reluctantly accepted a UN proposal calling for a six-month extension to implement Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution in mid-December, despite warnings from Kurdish lawmakers that failure to implement the article would be considered a direct violation of their rights under the constitution.
December 14, 2007
Iraq: Kurdistan Region Grapples With Draft Press Law

Kurdistan regional President Mas'ud Barzani (epa) Iraq's Kurdistan regional parliament passed a controversial press law on December 11 that purports to be one of the freest in the region but in fact imposes steep fines on journalists that publish material critical of the government or Kurdish officials.
December 13, 2007
Iraq: Sunnis, Sadrists Attack U.S. Security Pact

Will the agreement see U.S. troops leave, or settle into permanent bases? (AFP) A declaration of principles that U.S. President George W. Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki signed on November 26 calling for the negotiation of a long-term agreement on future political, economic, and security cooperation could pave the way for U.S. forces to pull out of Iraq by the end of next year.
December 06, 2007
Iraq: Sunni Legislator Among Political Untouchables

Adnan al-Dulaymi has been accused of being involved in sectarian and terrorist violence (file photo) (epa) When U.S. forces detained more than 30 employees of Iraqi legislator Adnan al-Dulaymi last week on charges of terrorism, it briefly appeared that the lawmaker, long accused of supporting terrorism, might face intense scrutiny over suspected wrongdoing. Instead, al-Dulaymi spent one day under house arrest, after which he was moved to the Al-Rashid Hotel in Baghdad's Green Zone, so he could continue to attend parliament sessions.
November 13, 2007
Iraq: Smuggling, Mismanagement Plaguing Oil Industry

Iraq's oil industry needs investment if it will be able to reach previous levels of production (epa) November 13, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Even as Iraq's Kurds sign production-sharing contracts with foreign firms, oil production south of the Kurdistan region appears handicapped by a lack of government control and continued smuggling.
November 12, 2007
Iraq: Kurds Push Ahead With Oil Contracts

Iraq's Kurds have been awarding contracts to for oil exploration at an increasing rate in recent weeks (file) (AFP) November 12, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Iraq's Kurdistan regional government (KRG) continues to award contracts for oil exploration and development to foreign oil companies despite allegations by the central Oil Ministry that the contracts are not valid due to the absence of an oil law. The KRG has ignored the criticism and contends that the contracts are legal.

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