Sunni militia fear reprisals once US troops head home

They lost everything when Saddam Hussein was overthrown, but found their way back to a position of strength when the United States wooed them as mercenary troops to fight against al Qaeda.

But now, as American troops prepare to go home, the members of the Sunni Arab community who worked to consolidate the country's fragile peace once more have reason to fear the future.

This weekend was a case in point. In the latest targeted attack, a suicide bomber - almost certainly from al Qaeda - killed 13 and wounded 30 Sunni paramilitaries. The victims were all members of the Awakening Councils, the US-backed militia groups which switched sides to great effect to swing the battle against America's enemies.

Once, they fought against the occupying troops; when they switched sides, they were brought on to the US Army payroll. But now their paymasters are leaving and so the members of the Awakening Councils will lose the protection of the American flag.

Some 250 of the lightly armed Awakening Council fighters, also known as al-Sahwa or the Sons of Iraq, were milling around outside an Iraqi Army base in the town of Jbala, 55km south of Baghdad, waiting to collect their pay when the bomber struck on Sunday.

He was wearing an explosives belt and was able to infiltrate the crowd because he was wearing the same uniform as the Awakening Council members.

"What have we done to deserve this?" shouted Mohammed al-Janabi, who was seriously wounded in the stomach and legs by the blast. "We helped to make this area safe and when we come to receive our salaries, our bodies are ripped apart. God damn al Qaeda! God damn al Qaeda!"

The latest attack shows that al Qaeda, although weaker than it was in 2005-07 at the height of the Sunni-Shiite civil war, still has the ability to recruit, equip and target suicide bombers. Last Saturday a truck loaded with 910kg of explosives crashed into the entrance of the main military base in the northern city of Mosul, killing five US soldiers and two members of the Iraqi security forces.

The Awakening Councils contain many former anti-American insurgents and al Qaeda members. This makes it easy for al Qaeda to obtain intelligence on when the paramilitaries are most vulnerable to attack. A sign of the deep suspicions dividing members of the Awakening Councils and the predominantly Shiite Government security forces is that the Sunni fighters had not been allowed to enter together the base at Jbala to receive their pay.

Instead of being protected by the base's fortifications the fighters were compelled to wait in the street outside while small parties entered the base to get their money.

The Awakening Councils have always been suspected by the Government. With US soldiers due to leave Baghdad and other cities on June 30, many Sunni Arabs and Awakening Council members believe the Government will move against them.

HEAVY WEEKEND TOLL

* Six United States combat deaths in Iraq in the past three days.
* A roadside bomb killed an American soldier in Salahuddin, north of Baghdad, yesterday.
* Five soldiers were killed on Saturday in a suicide truck bombing in Mosul. It was the biggest loss of US life in a single blast in more than a year.
* At least 4272 members of the US military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003.

- INDEPENDENT, AP