IRAQ:Prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, leading a northern offensive against al-Qaeda, offered cash and freedom from prosecution yesterday to fighters who give up their weapons within 10 days.
Mr Maliki made the amnesty offer in the northern city of Mosul, where he has been supervising a campaign aimed at delivering a fatal blow to al-Qaeda in the city and Nineveh province.
Many al-Qaeda gunmen have regrouped in Nineveh after being pushed out of Baghdad and other areas. The US military says Mosul is al-Qaeda's last major urban stronghold in Iraq.
"We have decided to grant amnesty to those who joined the armed groups on condition they hand over heavy and medium weapons to the security forces," Mr Maliki said. Iraqi law allows each household to have an AK47 assault rifle.
Those who turned in arms would be paid a cash reward, Mr Maliki said. But in a condition that could limit the amnesty's reach, he said it only applied to "those who did not commit crimes against civilians or stain their hands with blood".
US officials blame al-Qaeda in Iraq for most big bombings in the country, including an attack on a Shia shrine in Samarra in February 2006 that set off a wave of sectarian killings that nearly tipped Iraq into all-out civil war.
"This operation . . . will achieve its goals: imposing law, preserving order, saving [Mosul] from the evil of terrorist groups and the remnants of the past regime," Mr Maliki said.
The US military says the Mosul campaign, which began on Saturday, was Iraqi-planned and led but is being closely supported by American units.
An influx of additional US troops last year and a decision by Sunni Arab tribes to turn against al-Qaeda has enabled US and Iraqi forces to push the militants out of Baghdad and the western province of Anbar, their former stronghold.
But US military commanders warn that the group still has the capability to carry out large attacks. Officials have not said how long Mr Maliki will remain in Mosul. He flew to Iraq's third largest city on Wednesday.
In late March, Mr Maliki also took charge of a military operation against Shia militias in Basra, which hit trouble when the Mahdi Army of Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr put up fierce resistance, and clashes spread to other towns in southern Shia Iraq and also Baghdad .- (Reuters)