Quarrelling exiles remain in disarray

Less than a month after declaring unity at a conference in London, the disparate and ever-squabbling Iraqi exile organisations are having trouble convening a second meeting and laying out a role for themselves in a future Iraq.

The exile forces had announced in London the formation of a 65-member "pre-transition council'' and pledged to convene inside Iraq on Jan. 15. But arguments over the role of the conference, the prospective leadership and the venue have forced an indefinite postponement, opposition officials said Tuesday.

As the clock ticks toward a possible U.S. invasion of Iraq and the destruction of President Saddam Hussein's rule, the lack of a cohesive strategy appears to be dooming any clear role for exile leaders. Reports from the United States indicate that the Bush administration is
planning a military and civilian authority to run postwar Iraq for a time, with no decision on any role for the exiles.

"We have many things to discuss and problems to overcome,'' said Hakim Bayati, an official of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, which is based in Iran and claims to be the main representative of the majority Shiite Muslim population in Iraq.

The Bush administration last summer hand-selected six opposition groups to oversee a united anti-Saddam front: the Supreme Council, the Iraqi National Congress, the Iraqi National Accord, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and a minormonarchist group.

But they have been fractious, and different U.S. government agencies have supported different groups.

© Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service