BAGHDAD: Prime Minister Nuri 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 world leaders calling on Iraq’s fractious politicians to unite urgently to help combat insurgents, as the military struggles to seize the initiative.

Maliki’s surprise move, made in his weekly televised address, appeared to be a bid to split the broad alliance of jihadists, loyalists of executed dictator Saddam Hussein and anti-government tribes that has captured large chunks of five provinces, displacing hundreds of thousands of people.

“I announce the provision of amnesty for all tribes and all people who were involved in actions against the state” but who now “return to their senses”, Maliki said.

But he excluded those involved in killings, and it was not immediately clear how many people might be eligible. Analysts have said some form of political reconciliation is needed to convince Arabs angry with the government to turn against their co-religionists and jihadists.

The vast majority of Iraq’s Arab minority do not actively support the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group spearheading the offensive, but analysts say anger over perceived mistreatment by the authorities means they are less likely to cooperate with the security forces.

Farcical parliamentary session: Maliki’s announcement came a day after an eagerly awaited opening to the Council of Representatives descended into chaos and ended in disarray without a speaker being elected.

Washington quickly warned that “time is not on Iraq’s side,” with State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf calling for “extreme urgency”.

UN special envoy Nickolay Mladenov said Iraqi politicians “need to realise that it is no longer business as usual”.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2014