Iraq's parliament reopens amid sectarian strife

[maddezmom]

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraq's parliament has reopened after a month-long recess marked by mounting sectarian violence, beginning a session which will discuss breaking up the country into semi-independent regions.

At the top of the agenda was the controversial question of whether to allow some of Iraq's provinces to merge into larger autonomous regions, a move which some Sunni lawmakers fear could lead to the country falling apart.

Other groups, however, strongly support an idea which would create virtually independent zones in the oil-rich Shiite south and Kurdish north, and leave the Sunnis economically isolated in the barren western desert.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's coalition government is struggling to unite Iraq's warring factions.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/iraq