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| Iraq |
| Iraqi PM confident of defeating Al-Qaeda |
| 2008-04-17 |
| Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said Wednesday he was more confident than ever of defeating Al-Qaeda and its allies, the day after a wave of attacks left over 60 people dead. "We are determined to defeat terrorism," the Iraqi leader told the European parliament's foreign affairs committee during a visit to Brussels. He declared "we are more confident than ever that we are close to a definitive victory over Al-Qaeda and its lawless allies." Maliki said the jihadist movement was in a state of "total isolation" in Iraq and was seeking "refuge beyond the borders" in neighbouring nations. "We call on neighbouring countries to dry up the roots of terrorism and prevent the terrorists from filtering into Iraq," he said. Asked repeatedly by the assembled European deputies about Iran's role in the violence in Iraq, Maliki was similarly firm saying, without mentioning Iran, that Iraq would take "all possible measures to prevent foreign interference. We reject all interference from neighbouring countries" and "we will prevent it." "Iraq refuses to be a theatre for regional powers," he insisted, calling on neighbouring nations to stop their countries from becoming "a training camp for terrorists." |
| Posted by:Fred |