Does Iraq violence threaten democracy?
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American forces have reportedly surrounded Shia fighters in the holy Iraqi city of Najaf following a night of intensive bombardment. Is the transition to democracy under threat?
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Jordanian monarch warns elections in violence-ravaged Iraq are impossible in current state of insecurity. By Hugh Schofield - PARIS.
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Iraqi and U.S. officials are nervous about whether the recent handover of power in Iraq is too late. They also are worried about whether Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi has sufficient legitimacy among Iraqis.
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President Bush defended the Iraq  war before skeptical world leaders on Tuesday, called on them  to help post-Saddam Iraq develop into a democracy and vowed not  to retreat against an insurgency that threatens more violence  in the country.
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Analysis: It has been clear for some time that the U.S. is not in control of events in Iraq. But the latest sectarian bloodshed suggests that even help from Iran and Syria  may not be enough to stop the slide into chaos
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Iraq's prime minister is weighing whether to sever his alliance with a radical Shiite cleric blamed for much of the country's sectarian violence, aides said Wednesday. But isolating Muqtada al-Sadr could lead to more deadly attacks, even if the strategy could produce a more stable administration over time.
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BASRA, Iraq -- Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, who is responsible for bringing democracy to Iraq, got a stirring taste of electoral politics on a recent swing through the impoverished Shi'ite south of the country.
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The elections in Iraq will set an example of democracy for the rest of the Middle East, President Bush said Friday.
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Iraq is now the second most unstable country in the world, a private survey finds, its standing deteriorating from last year's fourth place on a list of the 10 nations most vulnerable to violent internal conflict and worsening conditions.
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The United Nations is hopeful elections in Iraq can be held on schedule in January 2005 despite escalating violence &#151; but the level of U.N. electoral assistance will depend on security, the top U.N. envoy to Iraq says.
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IraqÂs leader unveiled a plan to defuse sectarian crises, but it was unclear whether it could stem the increasingly brazen violence.
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Iraq's president said on Saturday he  expected violence to deter the majority of Iraqis from voting  in Sunday's landmark election.
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CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts  - Sectarian violence in Iraq has become "self-sustaining," increasing the challenge of stabilizing the country, the top U.S. intelligence official said on Friday.
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Iraq was on the brink of a renewed outbreak of nationwide violence last night after United States forces and militiamen fought bloody engagements across Baghdad&#39;s slum district of Sadr City.
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BAGHDAD, Iraq Dec 31, 2004 - Three militant groups released a statement saying democracy is un-Islamic and warned Iraqis that if they vote in Jan. 30 elections they risk being attacked.
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IRAQâS electoral commission announced yesterday that the countryâs first polls would be held on January 30, amid rising concern that violence would make voting impossible in many Sunni-dominated areas.
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WASHINGTON -- Dozens of Iraqi academics and their families have been attacked and killed by extremists in recent weeks in what human rights groups say is an effort to eliminate remaining intellectuals and skilled professionals -- and destroy whatever prospects might exist for establishing a functioning democratic society.