British forces to hand over security control for Basra to Iraqi government

... For much of the year, the situation deteriorated. British troops who patrolled Basra came under escalating bombing and mortar attacks until September, when they quit their base in the city centre for the airbase on its outskirts.

Since then, with no more British troops in the city to attack, violence has abated. Many ordinary Basrawis say the city feels safer and government troops appear to be in charge.

Faction leaders, once at daggers drawn, have taken to making conciliatory remarks.

But despite some improvement in security, violence between Iraqis continues and the city is off-limits to Westerners, reports the Financial Times.

Some have suggested that Basra, which produces more than 90 per cent of government revenues and is home to 70 per cent of Iraq's proven oil reserves, could one day be comparable to Dubai or Kuwait. However, if the region is to move forward the Iraqi parties will have to work together.

The handover announcement came on the same day as a triple bombing killed at least 27 and wounded 150 in Amara in southern Iraq, where local authorities had recently taken over security responsibility from the British, reports The New York Times.

The triple bombing, in Amara, the capital of Maysan Province, was one of the deadliest attacks in Iraq in months and highlighted both the volatility of the south and the potential risks of turning over security to Iraqi forces in areas where tensions still run high.

During a visit to Basra, [Prime Minister] Maliki said the Amara attack was a "desperate attempt" to distract the public from broader security improvements in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq. He called on Amara residents to suppress the urge for vengeance.

... It was not clear, however, who was responsible for the car bombs.

Typically, Sunni extremist groups are blamed for dramatic car bombs here, but Amara is tightly controlled by Shiites. Sitting in an oil-rich province that borders Iran, about 200 miles southeast of Baghdad, it is the home of rival Shiite militias — the Mahdi Army, loyal to Moktada al-Sadr, and gunmen aligned with the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, which residents described as the city's dominant political force.

Opposition Liberal Democrat leader Vincent Cable responded to Wednesday's handover announcement by blaming Brown for the "continuing tragedy in Iraq," the BBC reports.

The British government has also been criticized for its treatment of the Iraqi translators it employs. More than half of the 200 interpreters on their list have been denied asylum, The Times (London) reported.

Iraqi interpreters hoping to resettle in Britain are being warned that the number accepted will be strictly limited and many will be unable to enter the country before summer 2009. The criteria laid down in the letter sent to former Iraqi employees by the British Government sets out the hurdles to be cleared before they can be considered refugees. They are being offered a financial package or resettlement in Britain, but not both.

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