Pat Dollard

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And, for the first time, he blames Iran, though not yet by name…

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s prime minister appealed Monday for support from his Arab neighbors, urging them to open embassies and forgive Iraqi debts as his government tries to crack down on Shiite militias in a crucial power struggle.

But the government plea came as militia leaders warned more violence could await.

Followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, leader of the biggest militia, said they could widen the battles with the government—even asking supporters for blood donations to aid fighters injured during weeks of urban clashes.

With tension rising, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki flew to Kuwait for a meeting Tuesday of Iraq’s neighbors to discuss ways they can help Iraq’s Shiite-led government as it confronts both Shiite militias and Sunni extremists including al-Qaida in Iraq.

Al-Maliki said he will be looking for tangible support, including relief from Iraq’s $67 billion foreign debt—most of it owed to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

“There are countries that support the political process and are opening embassies here. We need the others to open embassies here, too,” al-Maliki told reporters.

The direct appeal to Arab heavyweights highlights the regional dilemma posed by Iraq.

Sunni Arabs have a strong stake in keeping Iraq—which is majority Shiite—firmly in the Arab orbit as a buffer against expanding influence by Iran, the largest Shiite nation. But Arab neighbors are still leery of al-Maliki’s government and the deep Iranian ties of its main backers.

Al-Maliki is hoping that the ongoing crackdown against Shiite militants will allay their fears of Iranian leanings and a bias against his own Sunni population—which long held a privileged position under Saddam Hussein.

But he also pointed the finger at “some nations” he claimed were supporting extremist groups and “inciting strife through the media”—an apparent reference to Arab satellite TV stations based in the Gulf which the leadership here considers hostile to the government.

“I am a bewildered by the position of these nations,” al-Maliki added, without specifically naming a country. “Do they want to support Iraq? Iraq has emerged from a crisis and needs to be supported.”

U.S. officials have accused Iran—which will attend the Kuwait conference—of supporting Shiite extremists in Iraq, an allegation the Iranians deny.

The United States, too, has pressed Arab governments to respond to security improvements and political advances in Iraq with financial and political support. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, who visited Baghdad on Sunday, is scheduled to be at the Kuwait meeting to lend support to Iraq.

In Najaf, a top Sadrist spokesman, Salah al-Obeidi, warned that open warfare was a “strong possibility” if the government did not ease the pressure on al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army militia.

The government has demanded that al-Sadr disband the Mahdi Army or else the Sadrists will not be allowed to run in provincial elections this fall.

Al-Obeidi complained that government officials and Shiite intermediaries had offered “no serious proposals” for ending the confrontation and “we are ready for all possibilities.”

Last weekend, al-Sadr, who is believed to be in Iran, threatened in a Web site statement to declare full-scale war on the U.S.-backed government if attacks on his followers continue.

The crisis began nearly a month ago when al-Maliki launched a military offensive against the Mahdi Army and other Shiite militias in the southern port city of Basra.

Militiamen responded by shelling Baghdad’s U.S.-protected Green Zone, which houses the U.S. Embassy and offices of the Iraqi government. U.S. and Iraqi forces then laid siege to the Baghdad militia stronghold of Sadr City.

The daily clashes have raised fears that al-Sadr may formally scrap the unilateral truce he declared last August—a move that American officials credit with helping dramatically reduce violence.

In Sadr City—a sprawling slum of 2.5 million people—mosques broadcast appeals Monday for people to donate blood to help the hundreds who had been injured in the fighting. Residents contacted by telephone said many donors showed up at two hospitals in response to the call.

No major fighting was reported in Sadr City on Monday.

But U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Steve Stover said an unmanned U.S. aircraft fired a Hellfire missile at a group of gunmen late Sunday, killing all three.

In Basra, a roadside bomb exploded near a U.S. convoy in the central part of the city, setting a Humvee ablaze and causing casualties, the U.S. military said. No further details were released.