Al Qaeda bombing prompt political unity in Iraq

Sunday Telegraph:

The bombing of Iraq's parliament by suspected al-Qaeda militants appears to have backfired by uniting Sunni and Shia politicians against a common enemy.

An alliance of Sunni insurgent groups that includes al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility for Thursday's attack, in which an MP died and more than 20 other people were injured.

Shia parliamentarians had previously voiced disquiet at the security threat posed by their Sunni colleagues, claiming that many of those protecting Sunni MPs had links to al-Qaeda. But at an extraordinary session of the parliament on Friday, politicians from both sides condemned the suicide attack and vowed to press forward with the political process, calling for unity against extremism.

There were also signs that Sunni insurgents had had enough of their erstwhile al-Qaeda allies. "They have realised that those people are not working for Iraq's interests. They realised that their operations might destroy Iraq altogether," said Alaa Makki, a Sunni MP.

Other politicians indicated that the bombing had worked against al-Qaeda. "The relationship between [Sunni and Shia MPs] is better than before, because now they have agreed to fight terrorism together," one commentator noted. Officials say three people, believed to be workers in the cafeteria where the bomb went off, have been detained.

...

It appears that al Qaeda has prompted a political agreement that had evaded the Iraqis for sometime. I have said for sometime that al Qaeda's campaign against non combatants was driving the hearts and minds of the people away from their cause. They have now driven teh hearts and minds of the politicians together. Like the Sunni change of sides in Anbar, this could be significant.