Hope They Know What They're Doing Over There

U.S. frees 1,000 Iraqis
charter talks go on
By Michael Georgy

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Saturday it had freed 1,000 detainees from Iraq's notorious Abu Ghraib prison at the Baghdad government's request, in the largest release to date.

It was not clear if the decision was linked to a demand by Arab Sunnis opposed to a draft constitution that authorities release Sunni prisoners so they can participate in a referendum on the text and elections later this year.

"I know this is a big one, but I can't say if it is related to anything that is going on," said U.S. military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Steven Boylan.

Whether or not it was part of negotiations on the charter, the release is likely to ease concerns over the estimated 10,000 Iraqi prisoners held in U.S. detention centres in the country.

"This is a good move that we definitely welcome," said Hussein al-Falluji, one of 15 Sunnis on the panel drafting the constitution.

Parliament Speaker Hajem al-Hassani confirmed that a draft constitution with new proposals on disputed points such as federalism would be reviewed by Arab Sunnis and the chamber would receive a response on Sunday.

Sunnis are fiercely opposed to federalism, fearing it would give Shi'ite and Kurdish leaders dominating the government control over oil resources in northern and southern Iraq.

Hopefully this will help things on the constitution front. I think we need to moderate our reliance on this first "constitutional convention." I fear that Bush has invested too much of our political capital on this first attempt solving our problems in Iraq. This provides too much ammo for his opponents in the Democrat Party to suggest that the Iraq War is misguided.

Full Story: Abu Ghraib Release

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