Kathleen Ridolfo

Also by Kathleen Ridolfo

• July 12, 2006

  Sectarian Militias Blocking The Road To Security

  Iraqi leaders warned this week that their country was on the brink of civil war. And Sunni and Shi'ite leaders faced off on television, blaming each other for the surge in violence in the capital.

• June 30, 2006

  Toward National Reconciliation

  "I thank you greatly for the opportunity to present this plan on reconciliation and national dialogue, hoping that it will realize an opportunity to improve the painful reality that our country and dear people continue to experience," Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on June 25 when he presented a new reconciliation initiative to the legislature. But can al-Maliki's plan reunite his fractured country?

• June 27, 2006

  National Reconciliation Plan Gets Tentative Support

  PRAGUE, June 28, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Leading Iraqi groups this week pledged support for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's national-reconciliation initiative while expressing some skepticism over whether al-Maliki's administration can actually carry out the ambitious plan.

• June 23, 2006

  Premier Launches Ambitious Reconciliation Plan

  Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has presented his national reconciliation plan, and many appear poised to support the initiative, which proposes a multifaceted approach to Iraq's security crisis.

• May 31, 2006

  New Iraqi Government Faces Daunting Security Concerns

  PRAGUE, May 31, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has vowed to take stiff action against insurgents, militias, and other rogue elements that threaten the security situation in Iraq. But with violence on the rise in May, and no word on who will fill the crucial posts of interior, defense, and national security minister, many are questioning the ability of U.S. and Iraqi forces to pull the country back from the brink of civil war.

• May 24, 2006

  New Government Already Facing Doubters

  Iraq's Council of Representatives have approved Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's cabinet, but not before one party stormed out of the session to protest what it said was the allocation of portfolios along sectarian lines.

• May 18, 2006

  Despite Reported Cabinet Deal, Some Parties Not Satisfied

  As leading Iraqi politicians announced this week that a deal on the cabinet was at hand, a number of political parties voiced their displeasure with the negotiations, saying sectarian politics were getting in the way of forming a national-unity government.

• May 17, 2006

  Iraq: Bringing Security To The Chaotic South

  Local police in Al-Basrah are reportedly dominated by militias and incapable of keeping the peace (epa) PRAGUE, May 17, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- President Jalal Talabani told reporters at a May 15 press briefing in Baghdad that the Presidency Council has formed a committee to look into the deteriorating security situation in Al-Basrah, where rogue militias now run rampant as the political parties supporting them vie for power.

• May 12, 2006

  New Kurdish Administration Comes Under Scrutiny

  Iraq's Kurdish region parliament unanimously approved the 42-member cabinet of the Kurdish region government on May 7, installing the first post-Saddam Hussein unified Kurdish administration. But the new government faces tough demands from its electorate.

• May 05, 2006

  Iraq: Initiatives On Armed Groups Raise Concerns

  Nuri al-Maliki has put forward a plan to bring the militias into the security forces (AFP) Iraq's president and prime minister-designate have announced separate initiatives in recent weeks aimed at reining in the violence that has plagued the country. Both plans are highly controversial, raising concerns that they might further strain sectarian relations in Iraq.

• May 03, 2006

  Ankara Eyes Military Incursion Against PKK

  Turkish press reports say that Ankara is amassing troops on its border with Iraq in preparation for a possible operation into northern Iraq against Turkish-Kurdish fighters of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

• April 27, 2006

  Turkey Urged To Seek Baghdad's Help In Dealing With Kurds

  Despite Turkey's suspicion of the largely autonomous Kurdistan region in Iraq, Iraq's Kurds could play a positive role in improving Ankara's relations with its own Kurdish minority.

• April 25, 2006

  Premier-Designate Promises Tough Approach

  The background of Iraq's prime minister-designate, Jawad al-Maliki, has many people wondering whether he can rein in rogue elements in the security forces.

• April 21, 2006

  Shi'ite Bloc Goes Back To The Drawing Board

  Iraq's Shi'ite leaders are meeting to select a new nominee for the post of prime minister a day after Prime Minister-designate Ibrahim al-Ja'fari withdrew his highly contested nomination to the post.

• April 21, 2006

  Sectarian Violence Increasing Internal Displacement

  Ten thousand Iraqi families have been internally displaced as a result of the ongoing civil conflict, and the number continues to rise. The president of the Iraqi Red Crescent Society told RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq that the number of displaced has almost tripled in less than a month.

• April 12, 2006

  Iraq: Egyptian President's Remarks Illustrate Growing Divide

  Arab League Secretary-General Amr Musa at the April 12 meeting in Cairo (epa) The Iraqi government announced on April 11 that it would boycott this week's Arab foreign ministers' meeting in Cairo to protest remarks by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak questioning the loyalty of Iraq's Shi'ite population. Mubarak told Al-Arabiyah television on April 8 that Iraq's Shi'a -- and all Shi'a for that matter -- are more loyal to Iran than to the Arab states in which they live. His comments drew fire from Shi'ite communities in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Bahrain.

• April 04, 2006

  Shi'ite Opposition To Al-Ja'fari Nomination Growing

  Ibrahim al-Ja'fari faces a new challenge in his bid for a second term as prime minister, as voices within his own coalition question his candidacy.

• March 31, 2006

  Iraq: Kurdish Media Complain Of Harassment

  The memorial site at Halabjah, which was the scene of the March 16 demonstration (file photo) (AFP) Freedoms of speech and of the press in Iraqi Kurdistan are being called into question following the arrests of several journalists and intellectuals in recent months. As independent Kurdish media outlets push for greater press freedoms, Kurdish government officials blame outdated laws for the arrests.

• March 29, 2006

  U.S. Relations With Main Shi'ite Alliance Fraying

  Relations between Iraq's Shi'ite-led United Iraqi Alliance and the United States deteriorated this week with charges that U.S.-backed Iraqi forces fired on a group of worshippers at a Baghdad mosque.

• March 23, 2006

  Mixed Reactions To Possible U.S.-Iran Talks

  Several Iraqi politicians have expressed concern over proposed talks between the United States and Iran on the issue of security in Iraq. Some critics worry that Iraq's concerns might be overshadowed by the standoff over Iran's nuclear program.

Load more