Maliki urged Monday other Arab countries to reopen their embassies in the capital in a show of support for his government as it cracks down on Shiite militias in Iraq. His call came as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice she said after a conference of the Gulf Cooperation Council plus Jordan and Egypt that Iraq would now routinely attend Gulf Arab meetings, which signaled Baghdad's “reintegration” into regional politics after the US-led invasion in 2003. In Baghdad, a police commander said six people died in clashes in the embattled Shiite enclave of Sadr City. They included three policemen and three civilians, according to the officer who asked not to be named since he was not authorized to release the information. The clashes between Shiite militiamen and government troops came after followers of hardline cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Sunday raised the stakes in the showdown with al-Maliki's government, refusing to disband their Mahdi Army militia. Al-Maliki, also a Shiite, has demanded that al-Sadr disband the Mahdi Army, the country's biggest Shiite militia, or his followers will not be allowed to run in provincial elections this fall. Al-Maliki urged Arab governments to cancel his country's debts. “Iraq cannot alone shoulder the debt arising from the military adventures of (Saddam Hussein's) regime,” he told reporters as he departed for Kuwait, where he will attend a conference involving Iraq's neighbors and world powers. They will discuss ways to help Iraq secure its borders and improve internal security and stability. Most of Iraq's debt to the Paris Club of creditor nations has been forgiven. “A number of countries around the table talked about their desire of having permanent representation in Iraq. The necessary arrangements would need to be made,” Rice told a news conference in Bahrain. “I do believe that it's a process which will move forward.” Rice will join Arab nations and other G8 countries for the meeting in Kuwait which will back Iraq's drive to disarm militias and urge more embassies to open in Iraq, according to a draft of the final communique obtained by Reuters. Rice has said she will push hard for Arab neighbors to «meet their obligations» and step up financial and diplomatic support that has not been forthcoming since the 2003 invasion. She declined to give details on debt relief plans on Monday. About $66.5 billion of Iraq's debt has been forgiven, with the bulk of that by the Paris Club members, according to State Department estimates this month. __
