Iraqi Lawmakers Demand Inquiry Of Abuse Claims

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Source: Associated Press

By LARA JAKES
Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) -- The Iraqi prime minister's political opponents demanded Thursday that parliament hold a special session to investigate claims that prisoners have been tortured by his government.

Lawmakers from the Sunni-backed Iraqiya group have seized on the abuse allegations that surfaced last week in a cache of secret U.S. military documents released by online whistle-blower WikiLeaks as evidence that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is unfit to govern. Al-Maliki, meanwhile, has attacked the WikiLeaks release as an attempt to undermine him as he seeks to clench a second term in office.

Parliament has been stalled while Iraqiya and al-Maliki's Shiite-led coalition battle for the right to form a new government after inconclusive March 7 elections.

"The representatives of the people should not be any less humane than the international organizations that have called for an investigation," Iraqiya spokesman Haidar al-Mullah told reporters.

He said the inquiry would focus in part on al-Maliki's oversight of Iraqi security forces in his role as the nation's commander in chief since some of the alleged abuse by Iraqi security forces occurred after he became prime minister in May 2006.

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