The Iraqi interim government faces a major challenge both before and after the transfer of power on 30 June, namely that of restoring law and order, writes Omayma Abdel-Latif Shortly after the bombing in Baghdad on Monday that claimed the lives of more than 12 Iraqis and five foreign contractors, Prime Minister Iyad Allawi pleaded with his fellow Iraqis to "remain patient". Addressing a press conference shortly after the attack, Allawi said, "I want our people to be patient this month with those forces which are trying to assault them, and I promise you that we are going to get rid of them." For Iraqis, however, Allawi's promises ring hollow in light of a worsening situation that continues to claim Iraqi lives daily. This week at least 24 people were killed and dozens injured in car bombings in Baghdad. With only two weeks to go before the transfer of sovereignty to the newly appointed interim government, car bombings and attacks on Iraqi policemen remain an indication of the hard days ahead for the transitional government. Hours after Monday's bombing, Allawi, in an attempt to appear in control, unveiled what he described as "a new security plan" to put an end to the violence. Observers say that Allawi's failure to deliver on his promises to obtain stability will prove crucial to the government's already contested legitimacy. "It is important for Allawi's government to establish that it knows what it is doing and to show that it is competently managing the situation," said one observer. In what appeared to be an orchestrated media campaign, Iraqi officials appeared on Arab TV channels to convey one message, namely to "assure our Iraqi people and fellow Arabs that we will rein in the terrorists". Iraqi Interior Minister Fallah Al-Naquib, a former Baathist, told Dubai- based Al-Arabyia on Tuesday, "The situation in Iraq has become intolerable." "We expect to experience an upsurge in violence in the coming period, but I want to assure the Iraqis that we are in a position to stop this campaign of violence, the aim of which is to destroy this country," he said. Although Al-Naquib would not elaborate on the details of the new security plan, he stressed it would be implemented for the most part by Iraqi security forces. Al-Naquib and other Iraqi officials blame the US-led occupation forces for the current security situation in Iraq. The Iraqi interior minister declined, however, to answer questions on whether or not the new plan would be implemented in cooperation with occupation forces. "The Iraqis, for the most part, will carry out the major security tasks," he said. Despite these assurances, the people of Iraq remain sceptical of the ability of the new government to restore security in light of the fact that it has failed to protect the lives of its own members. Bassam Salih Kubba of the foreign ministry was killed on Saturday and an education official, Kamal Al-Jarrah, was gunned down outside his home the following day. Kubba and Al-Jarrah have similar backgrounds. Both were former Baathists who served under Saddam Hussein. While the motivation for the killings remains unknown, Iraqi officials insist their murders were aimed to "undermine" the new government. "Such attacks mainly aim to weaken the new government and render its law and order policies ineffective," Adnan Al-Asadi, of the Iraqi Interior Ministry, told Al-Ahram Weekly in a telephone interview on Monday. Perhaps one of the key questions raised by this week's carnage has to do with the identity of the perpetrators. While the Western media laid blame on religious fanatics, Saddam loyalists and/or foreign terrorists, Al-Naquib was unwilling to make a definite statement. Some officials, including the Iraqi prime minister himself, said the attacks bore the hallmark of Al-Qaeda. Al-Naquib, however, suspects two main groups: either foreign fighters who are "not from neighbouring countries" or Iraqi elements who "participate in the current political process and yet conduct attacks to undermine it". He would not elaborate further on their identity. Meanwhile, the attacks were denounced by members of the Iraqi Islamist Party, who insisted that "this is not resistance". Like most Iraqi officials, Al-Asadi, who is also deputy to Iraqi Vice President Ibrahim Al-Jaafari, blamed the violence in Iraq on what he described as "networks of destruction and terror". Though reluctant to name names, he pointed out that the escalation in violence was closely linked to the power handover. "It has become clear to us that as the date of the handover comes closer these forces want to prove that this government is incapable of maintaining order," he said. "They want to sway the Iraqis from cooperating with the new government and want to give the impression that the power handover will have repercussions." Al-Asadi agreed that the attacks were undermining the Iraqi government's efforts to restore stability. But he insisted that the new government remains committed to its goals. According to him, the ministry has received "important information" on possible attacks, some of which were successfully pre-empted. But there is still a long way to go. "We cannot claim that everything will be fully under our control on 1 July, but at least we will try to minimise the damage." Al-Asadi, like Allawi, has promised the people of Iraqi that radical change will take effect once the government assumes full control over security in the country. "We realise that the coming period is not going to be easy and violence is bound to escalate, but when our security forces take over completely, violence will decrease."
