Al-Nujaifi calls on leaders for resolution

Speaker of the Iraqi House of Representatives, Osama al-Nujaifi has warned that Iraq could become a divided country if the dispute between the federal government and Kurdistan Regional Government continues to escalate. Speaking to Arabstoday, Nujaifi called on Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Kurdish President Massoud Barzani to stop the provocative remarks and search for common ground to resolve the "grave" situation. Nujaifi will travel to Arbil for a meeting with Kurdish officials in a bid to reach a diplomatic settlement. He explained that he will offer Kurdish leaders the same proposal which he has previously presented to Prime Minister al-Maliki. The plan calls for the withdrawal of military forces from the town of Tuz Khurmatu and a security handover to local forces in the region. There are several other provisions to help ease tension between the two sides. Nujaifi spoke to leaders in Kurdistan on the phone and told them about the initiative. He is hopeful of a positive response during his visit to the region. "The leaders of the Kurdistan region spoke positively while waiting for my visit, and I think there is hope for the new meeting in Baghdad to continue negotiations." He said the formation of the Tigris Operations Command by the Prime Minister along with broad powers is an "unconstitutional decision," comparing it to the establishment of Nineveh Operations Command in Mosul. Nujaifi said that these commanders have higher powers than local government officers, which is contrary to the constitution and requires Parliamentary approval. The house speaker said, "the power of central government is the power of all. We do not accept that Baghdad and the Iraqi army is weak because it is an army for all Sunnis and Shiites, Turkmen and Kurds. Moving military forces into cities for political purposes without consulting the Parliament is not acceptable and is an encroachment on parliamentary authority." Nujaifi said that any attempt to drag the country to war will be illegal if it did not pass through the parliament, adding that the House of Representatives will not accept the existence of internal wars in Iraq anymore and that all parties have to resort to the language of reason and understanding, not to the language of arms, force and threats. He also said that the Iraqi parliament has formed two committees to look into potential abuse of prisoners in Baghdad.