End to Iraq violence 'in sight'

The decision by two Iraqi insurgent groups to appoint a joint public representative has been cautiously welcomed as a "positive step" by security experts.

Mohammad Alsayeedi, a spokesman for the Iraqi government's National Security supervisor, told Gulf News the development could bring an end to some of the violence that continues to wrack the country.

"I'm sure this has to be good, it is something new to have a public voice for these groups, the willingness to talk is some kind of progress. We will have to see what happens," he said in a brief telephone interview from Baghdad.

According to a statement posted on the internet, the Islamic Army in Iraq and the Mujahadeen Army have made Ebrahim Yousuf Alshammari their public face, authorising him to speak on their behalf. It is the first time the shadowy groups have put themselves forward so openly.

In an interview with the Aljazeera satellite channel, Alshammari said he would represent the pair of militant organisations in any future talks with the Iraqi or US governments, although he denied such negotiations had already taken place.

Richard Evans, of Jane's Terrorism and Insurgency Centre in London, called it "significant" that the groups had publicly declared their willingness to sit down with government officials.

But he also warned it was unclear what impact the step would have on the wider insurgency.

Speaking to Gulf News, he said: "It has to be viewed as positive that the groups would come further out in the open, it suggests room in future for greater negotiation and some sort of political dialogue.

"However, the key question remains about whether the people doing the talking really represent insurgents, whether they can really speak for the fighters in the streets."

Similar problems affect recent claims the Iraqi and US government have been holding back-channel talks with insurgent leaders.

The guerilla war remains shrouded in secrecy and confusion, with numerous different groups fighting in different places for different reasons.

No one even knows how many people have taken up arms in the insurgency, although some estimates have put it at 200,000.

"It's very hard to know if you're dealing with someone who actually represents fighters, and if so how many and exactly who," Evans said.

While nationalist and tribal forces are thought to be open to the idea of talks, some insurgent groups including the most destructive have ruled out laying down their arms and entering any kind of political process.

Al Qaida in Iraq has vowed to fight to the death against US forces and the security apparatus of the fledgling Iraqi government.

Meanwhile, breaking an impasse that had threatened to delay the drafting of a new constitution, a mostly Shiite and Kurdish constitutional committee met on Tuesday and formally accepted 15 Sunni politicians who had been lobbying to join the committee.