Last month the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc banned lawmakers and government ministers from parliament and Cabinet sessions after the Shiite-led government issued an arrest warrant for Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi on terrorism charges. The boycott brought the government to a standstill and plunged the country into a political crisis just days after the US completed its military withdrawal in mid-December. The sectarian political fight has been accompanied by a surge in violence, killing more than 300 people since then and raising fears of a civil war.
The specter of civil war in Iraq has pushed Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to call Iraq's Sunni and Shiite community leaders to Turkey and the Turkish Foreign Ministry has already started preparations for the conference, aimed at reducing tensions between rival sectarian groups, Turkish daily Sabah reported Wednesday.
Ayatollah Ali Sistani, a leading Shiite cleric, has already agreed to send his representative, who will be presiding over Shiite clerics. Turkey will be moderating the conference, during which Sunnis and Shiites will work out ways to bury hostilities.
Turkey's message will be delivered by Religious Affairs Directorate head Mehmet Görmez. Turkey will also call on all groups to assume responsibility for ending violence in the country. Al-Qaeda and other Sunni extremist groups are thought to be exploiting sectarian tensions in the wake of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's efforts to marginalize the Sunni minority and cement his own grip on power.
Al-Maliki's security forces have launched a widespread crackdown on Sunni politicians, detaining hundreds for alleged ties to the deposed Baath Party. Al-Hashimi, a Sunni, fled to the safety of the Kurdish semiautonomous zone after he was charged with running death squads during the height of the war.
Turkey has been critical of the Iraqi prime minister for stoking sectarian tensions in Iraq and ties between the two nations became significantly strained after Maliki accused Erdoğan of interfering in Iraq's internal affairs.
Turkey is planning to establish a dialogue mechanism between Sunnis and Shiites in the country that will facilitate consultations. Another goal of Turkey is to form an institutional organization that will bring together all segments of society in the region.
