Allawi Calls for Unity, Again

You know what? As cynical as I am, I'm happy about yesterday's turn out. I know it will not solve the big problems in Iraq (read: security), but it is still a step in the right direction, no matter how small a step it is. Anyway, today, interim PM Allawi asked the people of Iraq to unify as one. How quaint (ahh, there's my old cynicism). From the WP:

A day after Iraq's first free vote in half a century, interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi called on Iraqis to unite and promised to reach out to the country's alienated Sunni Arab minority. The Sunni reaction may determine whether the electoral euphoria can be translated into the stability that has eluded Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

"The terrorists now know that they cannot win," Allawi said in a statement Monday from Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone. "We are entering a new era of our history and all Iraqis -- whether they voted or not -- should stand side by side to build their future."

The need for national reconciliation emerged as a theme in the wake of Sunday's elections, as Iraqis awaited the results and the naming of a 275-member parliament that will appoint government leaders. In Baghdad and some other parts of Iraq, the vote generated scenes of jubilation. But it apparently failed to draw large numbers of Sunnis, especially in rural areas. Many stayed away in protest or because of intimidation.