BBC says Iraq gov warming up to Sunni security councils

BBC

Last year, the Iraqi government warned of the dangers of giving too much power to the mainly Sunni Awakening Councils, armed neighbourhood groups that have successfully driven al-Qaeda out of many districts of Baghdad and elsewhere.

Now, with their numbers having risen to around 80,000 nationwide, the Shia-led administration in Baghdad says it is in the process of recruiting Awakening Council members into the police and army.

"We should not miss this golden opportunity afforded by the Sunni Arab community having turned against al-Qaeda and coming back into the fold," Iraq's Security Advisor, Dr Mowaffaq al-Rubaie, told the BBC.