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In Iraq, key US ally falls from grace

May-20-2004 » Filed Under: Iraq News

This is certainly an interesting development. I'll be anxious to see how this one plays out.

[Link to Full Article]
By Annia Ciezadlo, The Christian Science Monitor

BAGHDAD – A year ago, Ahmed Chalabi was the darling of American policymakers, a political powerhouse with unprecedented access to the highest levels of the Pentagon. [...]

But Thursday, US troops raided his house and the offices of his Iraqi National Congress political party. Earlier this week, his party's monthly US stipend of $340,000 was abruptly cut off.

Mr. Chalabi's standing is a marker of sorts showing the philosophical shift in the US effort to create an Iraqi body politic.

Hours after the raid, Chalabi repudiated the American occupation authority and declared himself a leader of the new Iraq.

"My relationship with the Coalition Provisional Authority doesn't exist," he told a packed room at "Chinese House," in the

wealthy Mansur neighborhood of Baghdad. "And together with the governing council, we are still seeking to form a stable government."

The BBC provides a brief profile of Chalabi if you're interested. He was one of the first exiles to return to Iraq.


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