Feeling lonely, Mr. President?

Iraqi leaders call for a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops -- and say that insurgents have a legitimate right of resistance.

Published November 22, 2005 3:13PM (EST)

Don't anybody tell George W. Bush or Dick Cheney, but Iraqi leaders called today for a timetable for getting U.S. troops out of their country -- and said that insurgents in Iraq have a "legitimate right" of resistance.

As the Associated Press reports, a communiqué finalized by Shiite, Kurdish and Sunni leaders Monday "condemned terrorism but was a clear acknowledgment of the Sunni position that insurgents should not be labeled as terrorists if their operations do not target innocent civilians or institutions designed to provide for the welfare of Iraqi citizens." Although the leaders did not set a specific timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, Iraq's interior minister said Monday that U.S. troops should be able to leave by the end of 2006.

We haven't heard the GOP response yet, so we'll have to tell you later if the Iraqis are "cowards" or just members of the "extreme liberal wing of the Democratic Party."


By Tim Grieve

Tim Grieve is a senior writer and the author of Salon's War Room blog.

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George W. Bush Iraq Iraq War Middle East War Room