Sunni Groups Announce Election Boycott

BAGHDAD — Dozens of mostly Sunni political organizations announced that they would boycott the elections today, the deadline for political parties to register with Iraq’s Election Commission.

The announcement made by the Sunni Muslim Scholars Assn. was not a surprise, but the large number of groups that agreed to the boycott undercuts strenuous efforts by the interim Iraqi government and their U.S. backers to ensure Sunni participation.

Without substantial Sunni involvement, any government elected would be fragile at best.

Meanwhile, violence continued north of Baghdad in Bayji and Mosul, where insurgents attacked the governor’s house, killing a guard. In Bayji, six Iraqis were killed in fighting.

The Iraqi government and the United States military remained at odds over whether the fighting in Fallouja was ended. The Iraqi government claimed victory and were moving into the rebuilding process.

While “secure” from insurgents, the U.S. military was conducting a house-to-house search for rebels in order to make the area “safe” for residents to return to Fallouja, said Lt. Gen. John Sattler, commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Forces.

“The town … of Fallouja is secure,” Sattler said. “But we’re in that search-and-clear phase, which will make it safe.”

He added, “We will then turn that relatively safe town over, over a period of time, to the Iraqi security forces.”

U.S. forces located several insurgent bases in Fallouja, but Sattler denied they were operated by Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born militant who has been behind a wave of attacks against civilians and U.S. soldiers in Iraq and remains at large. The U.S. made numerous bombing raids in Fallouja against suspected hideouts of Zarqawi and his network before the latest offensive was launched.

Troops found names of individuals believed to be supporting the insurgency, including from other countries that are beyond those neighboring Iraq, Sattler said.

“I cannot stand here and tell you that we found the command and control house or building where Zarqawi went ahead and orchestrated,” he said.

But he added: “We feel right now that we have, as I mentioned, broken the back of the insurgency and we have taken away this safe haven.”

Sattler added that one U.S. Marine and one member of the Iraqi security force were killed today in a firefight with rebels. Since the Fallouja offensive began Nov. 7, the number of U.S. troops killed totals 51 and 425 have been wounded in action.

Over the same period, Sattler said, U.S. and Iraqi forces have killed 1,200 insurgents.

Rubin reported from Baghdad; Strickland from Los Angeles.