Sunni officials list needs

Condoleezza Rice and the U.S. envoy to Iraq reminded
diplomats of their duty.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring near-victory against al-Qaida, Sunni officials from Iraq’s Anbar province laid out Friday what they want now from the United States: money to rebuild its battle-damaged cities, help expanding its police force by a third and private U.S. investment in its oil reserves.

“We united and that’s why we obtained victory. So we are asking now that we compensate this province for all of the destruction it has faced,” said Sheik Ahmed Abu Risha, whose older brother was assassinated after leading a revolt against al-Qaida terrorists.

The sheik was part of an eight-member delegation in Washington this week. The officials met separately with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, as well as several members of Congress.

Anbar has become the much-needed good news story on Iraq for the Bush administration. Before this year, the western Iraqi province was considered the hotbed of the Sunni insurgency and al-Qaida terrorist forces in the country. The province stabilized in recent months, after clans in the region allied against al-Qaida and the U.S. military increased troop levels there.

Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha, who led the revolt, was assassinated just 10 days after meeting with President Bush last September; during the brief visit to al-Asad Air Base, Bush hailed Abu Risha’s courage. Huddled around a small table at the Washington Plaza on Friday, four members of the delegation said they came to the U.S. to seek continued support.

Speaking to reporters through a translator, the officials said they were grateful for the U.S. help against al-Qaida but still needed help to expand their police force to 30,000 personnel and rebuild its infrastructure.

They also said al-Qaida was nearly defeated, scattered in small pockets throughout the province.

Meanwhile, Rice and the U.S. envoy to Baghdad reminded diplomats Friday of their duty to serve their country amid a revolt among some who are resisting forced assignments to Iraq.

In separate comments, Rice and Ambassador Ryan Crocker said foreign service officers are obligated by their oath of office to work at any diplomatic mission worldwide, regardless of the risks involved or their personal feelings about the policies of any given administration.

“We are one foreign service and people need to serve where they are needed,” Rice told reporters aboard her plane as she flew to Turkey for a weekend conference of top officials from Iraq’s neighbors. On his way to the meeting, Crocker offered an even blunter assessment, saying that diplomats have a responsibility to prioritize the nation’s interest over their personal safety.

Joining the foreign service “does not mean you can choose the fight,” he told reporters in Dubai. “It’s not for us to decide if we like the policy or if the policy is rightly implemented. It’s for us to go and serve, not to debate the policy, not to agree with it.”