A SUNNI tribal leader was murdered in the Iraqi city of Ramadi a day after taking part in talks with American and Iraqi officials aimed at curbing violence there.

Sheikh Nasser Kareem al-Fahdawi, head of the al-Bu Fahad tribe and a physics professor at Anbar University, was shot by insurgents opposed to the talks in late December.

His killing came 24 hours after he had joined tribal leaders representing insurgent groups in a meeting with Zalmay Khalilzad, the American ambassador, and Ibrahim Jaafari, the Shi’ite prime minister.

A source within the tribe, who is also a member of Al-Qaeda, indicated that he believed al-Fahdawi had been too sympathetic towards the United States during talks. “He was a traitor who deserved to be killed,” he said.

Two other tribal leaders have also been killed after revealing that they took part in talks and encouraging people to heed the American demands.

The Sunday Times revealed last June that US officials had held secret meetings with insurgents to try to draw them into the political process.

Sources present said the atmosphere at the December meeting, held at the American base in Ramadi, became heated.

Saab al-Rawi, a former senior Iraqi general who took part on the insurgents’ side, called for the withdrawal of US forces from Ramadi and their replacement by a brigade made up of former soldiers from the area, an end to checkpoints in the city and the release of all prisoners. He also urged the Iraqi government to allocate money for rebuilding large parts of the city which had been destroyed by bombing and fighting.

In reply General George Casey, the senior American commander in Iraq, joined Iraqi government representatives in calling for an end to the presence of all armed insurgents in the city and a handover of weapons. He also insisted that help for Al-Qaeda should be halted and all foreign Arab fighters expelled.

Al-Rawi demanded the removal of American forces. Casey slammed his fist on the table and accused him of merely wanting to drive US forces out of the city so that insurgents could take over. “If we leave before you meet our demands then Ramadi will become a second Falluja,” he is said to have told them. Fighting in Falluja has left 36,000 of the 50,000 homes destroyed.

Al-Rawi replied that his own forces had protected the city for six months after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime. “You have not protected this city and can never do so for you are foreigners here — unwanted and unwelcome,” he apparently said.

Another tribal leader accused Jaafari of blocking funds which had been earmarked for the reconstruction of Falluja. Jaafari shouted back that his government would not spend any money in Ramadi as long as attacks were being carried out against the police, army and American forces there.

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