RAMADI, Iraq – About 2,000 Iraqi protesters, demanding the ouster of premier Nouri Al-Maliki, blocked Sunday a highway in western Iraq leading to Syria and Jordan. The protesters, including local officials, religious and tribal leaders, turned out in Ramadi, the capital of Sunni province of Anbar, to demonstrate against the arrest of nine guards of Finance Minister Rafa al-Essawi. Their arrest on terrorism charges has sparked a call from Essawi for Maliki to quit or be removed. “We are gathered today not for Essawi and his bodyguards, but to change the course of this sectarian government and to overthrow Maliki's government,” Anbar provincial councillor Hikmat Iyada told the protesters. A letter from Sheikh Abdul Malek Al-Saadi, a leading Sunni cleric in Anbar, was read at the protest in which he called for Shiites in the government to respect Sunni officials, and the minority Sunni population in Iraq. Maliki was also condemned in a separate statement issued by fugitive Sunni vice president, Tareq Al-Hashemi, who praised the demonstration. “Maliki is a prisoner of a sick mind, obsessed with power,” said Hashemi, who has been handed multiple death sentences in absentia for charges he insists are politically motivated. “The Islamic and Arab world looks at him now as the sponsor of the Safavid (Iranian) project in Iraq.” Hashemi also called for a no confidence in the premier, accusing Maliki of aiming “to get rid of his opponents”. Sectarian tensions are still significant in Iraq, which suffered years of brutal confessional violence in which tens of thousands of people were killed and many more forced from their homes. Meanwhile, the United States has delivered two support ships to Iraq, which is seeking to boost its fledgling naval capabilities, the US embassy said Sunday. The two 60-meter offshore support vessels were delivered by the US navy on Dec. 20, the embassy said. The vessels are “large, multi-purpose, multi-functional ships capable of providing a wide range of support to Iraqi naval operations,” it said. They will also offer support to Iraq's patrol and fast attack boats at sea, offshore oil platforms and help move security personnel, the embassy added. The US military completed its withdrawal from Iraq on Dec. 18 last year. Less than 200 US military personnel remain in Iraq under US embassy authority, assisting with the delivery of military equipment, and training local personnel. – Agencies
