Iraq Crisis: Pushed to a corner, Iraq offers amnesty to rebels

Baghdad: Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki offered a general amnesty on Wednesday in a rare conciliatory move to undercut support for militants whose offensive has overrun swathes of territory and threatens to tear Iraq apart.

The offer comes after a farcical opening to the new Parliament, despite international leaders urging Iraq’s fractious politicians to unite to help combat insurgents, as the military struggles to seize the initiative on the ground.

Reports said that the US special forces who had been sent to Baghdad to secure the American Embassy, have begun flying sorties in Apache helicopters. Another report said that the Iraqi Air Force was getting Sukhoi aircraft from Iran.

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