Anti-government protests should continue

Iraqi preacher Sheikh Mohammed Mattar has called upon Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to put an end to sectarian policies. During his sermon to mark Eid al-Fitr, the end of the holy month of Ramadan, the sheikh accused the prime minister of putting his personal interests ahead of those of the Iraqi people, and held Maliki solely responsible for the killing of Iraqi people, referring to deaths during recent anti-government demonstrations across Iraq. On Friday, tens of thousands of Iraqis gathered in Sunni-majority parts of the country in new rallies against Maliki, a week after eight demonstrators were shot dead amid a dire political crisis. Thousands demonstrated in Fallujah, just west of Baghdad, where the killings took place at the hands of the army, railing against their alleged marginalisation at the hands of Iraq's Shiite-led authorities. "We want the fall of the regime -- no negotiations," proclaimed one banner in the town. The demonstrations were the latest in a wave of rallies that have continued largely uninterrupted since late December, criticising the alleged mistreatment of the Sunni community and, more recently, calling for Maliki's downfall. They are among the myriad problems confronting the premier, who has also faced vocal opposition from many of his erstwhile government partners less than three months before key provincial elections. Mattar urged his followers to continue protesting until the prime minister takes responsibility for the recent events. The latest rallies came a day after al-Qaeda's front group in Iraq released an audio message calling for the country's Sunnis to take up arms against the Shiite-led government. "You have two options," a voice in the audio message, purportedly that of Islamic State of Iraq spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, said. "You can kneel to them (the government), and this is impossible, or carry weapons and you will be the superior." Iraqi authorities have taken several steps in a bid to curb the protests. They claim to have released nearly 900 prisoners, and have pledged to raise the salaries of anti-Qaeda militiamen. At the same time, a top minister has publicly apologised for holding detainees without charge for prolonged periods.