The Fighting and Killing Continues to Hinder Any Chance of a National Election

Yesterday in Iraq, gunmen killed a key member of a Sunni clerics group who called for a boycott of the national elections, deemed to be on January 30th. Iraqi security forces have also discovered the bodies of 12 men, five of which have been decapitated. One of the men decapitated was found to be a member of the Iraqi National Guard. Also, "Sheik Faidh Mohamed Amin al-Faidhi, a member of the Association of Muslim Scholars, was shot by gunmen at his home in northern Mosul -- a sign of the continuing violence that wracks the country." Many Sunnis are boycotting this election due to the continued fighting. With the ongoing violence, which has been heightened by the U.S. invasion of Falluja, many think that it is nearly impossible for everyone to get their vote. Many can't see any way to get the ballots from cities like Falluja and Mosul.
Despite all the fighting, Prime Minister Ayad Allawi says, "The forces of darkness and terrorism will not benefit from this democratic experience and will fight it. But we are determined that this experiment succeeds.''