On April 14, senior officials said security forces thwarted a 9/11-style plot to crash hijacked aircraft on some of Shiite Islam's holiest shrines in the cities of Najaf and Karbala.

U.S. intelligence officials said the plot was apparently still in the planning stage but, had it been carried out, it probably would have triggered another spasm of Shiite-Sunni bloodletting.

Five days later, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced that Iraqi intelligence operatives, aided by U.S. troops and air power, killed al-Qaida in Iraq's top two leaders, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al-Masri, near Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown, north of Baghdad.

Al-Baghdadi was leader of the al-Qaida-led jihadist alliance known as the Islamic State of Iraq. Al-Masri was the military leader of AQI.

The next day, the Iraqi military said Ahmed al-Obeidi, the top insurgent leader in the north and also known as Abu Siheib, was killed in another raid mounted by Iraqi intelligence and backed by U.S. forces.

These add up to the most spectacular counter-terrorism success since Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the notorious Jordanian leader of AQI, was killed in a U.S. airstrike June 7, 2006, and a big morale-booster for Iraqi forces.

The Iraqis have repeatedly claimed to have captured al-Baghdadi and in 2009 claimed they had killed him. But that was never verified by the Americans.

They suspected for some time that there was no one al-Baghdadi but that the identity was a composite of several AQI leaders, a figurehead to give the insurgency an Iraqi commander rather than the foreign Arabs who dominated it during most of the insurgency.

So it's still not clear who the "al-Baghdadi" the Iraqis killed really is. But the real prize was al-Masri, an Egyptian. He took command of al-Qaida after Zarqawi was killed.

His death holds the greatest significance. He was the real brains of AQI and the leader with the closest connections to al-Qaida's core leadership, currently believed to be holed up in the badlands of northwestern Pakistan.

It wasn't clear whether the Iraqi claims were linked to the concern voiced by U.S. officials and analysts in recent weeks that the post-Saddam Hussein Iraqi army and security forces that the Americans have spent $20 billion to train weren't up to keeping order without U.S. backup.

If that is indeed the case, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama could find itself having to slow down the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces by August this year and extend their presence in Iraq.

That is political dynamite for the Obama administration, for whom the U.S. pullout is vital for domestic political reasons but also because the troops are needed to bolster U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, currently the main theater of operations.

Delaying the U.S. withdrawal would also be a slap in the face for Maliki, who made political capital out of negotiating the withdrawal agreement.

The reported victories against al-Qaida are most timely as he struggles to stitch together a political coalition that will give him a majority in the 325-seat parliament in the messy aftermath of the March 7 elections that produced no-outright winner.

If Maliki, a Shiite who came to power in the December 2005 elections, beats his main rival, former prime minister Iyad Allawi, a Shiite who has strong Sunni support, Iraq's Sunnis may find themselves marginalized.

In recent months, Maliki's Shiite-dominated security services have hounded and assassinated his Sunni rivals. He used spurious means to disqualify hundreds of them from running in the elections.

While the demise of al-Masri, al-Baghdadi -- whoever he turns out to be -- and Abu Suheib may be crippling setbacks for al-Qaida at this critical time, a Maliki victory could alienate the Sunnis once more.

The Sunnis, who had been a pillar of Saddam's Baathist regime, were the driving force behind the insurgency.

They were lured away from al-Qaida by the Americans in 2008-09, significantly weakening al-Qaida. A victorious Maliki could undo all the Americans achieved and renewed sectarian bloodshed could ensue.

earlier related report
Iraq Christians defy threats to erect Rio-like Jesus statue
Hamdaniya, Iraq (AFP) April 23, 2010 - The Christians of northern Iraq have chosen to defy mounting attacks by extremists by erecting a statue of Jesus modelled on the giant Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro.

The sculpture is only a tenth of the size of the 40-metre (130-foot) iconic statue that towers over the Brazilian city, but it has become a popular site for visitors in Hamdaniya, the north's largest Christian town.

"The idea of the statue is not to say Christians were here in case we leave," said Bashar Jarjees Habash, the city's coordinator of Christian affairs.

"But the idea of building the statue of Jesus opening his arms is to send a message of peace to everyone to say that we want to live in peace with all," said the 48-year-old.

"The people of this area have always tried to live in peace with everyone, even those who fight and threaten them."

In February, Human Rights Watch called on Iraq's government to do more to bolster security and protect Christians after a string of deadly attacks on the community ahead of last month's elections.

"The statue might be small if we compare it with what Christians did for Iraq over hundreds of years. The statue is stone and can be removed at any time, but the history of Christians cannot be abolished," said Habash.

"We have a great history, we are very loyal to Iraq," added the official charged by the church with preserving religious monuments.

The brick and plaster structure is in the middle of Hamdaniya, a city populated by 45,000 mostly Syriac Christians as well as a Kurdish Muslim community that makes up about 10 percent of the inhabitants.

Its construction was initiated and carried out by two local security guards who also have artistic skills. Using their bare hands, it was a labour of love.

"With the help of 20 volunteers, we built the statue in less than a month and we spent about 150,000 dinars (128 dollars)," said one of them, Alaa Naser Matti.

"It is built to last over 30 years. We painted it white, which is the colour of peace, and we will restore it each year.

"We have chosen to make a Jesus with open arms because it means that the city has been placed under his protection and he wants to spread peace in Iraq," said the 41-year-old.

Eight Christians were killed in and around Mosul within 10 days in February, and since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, there has been no letup for the nation's 550,000 Christians, most of them Chaldeans.

Pope Benedict XVI condemned the violence against them in his Easter message this month, and demanded that the Iraqi authorities do more to protect the "vulnerable" minority.

In late 2008, a systematic campaign of targeted killings and violence saw 40 Christians murdered in Mosul, causing around 12,000 of the community to flee for safety.

"When I pass by here, I cross myself and ask Jesus with all my heart to save us... and all those who kill without mercy," said Badriah Jedi, 72, who came with her daughter and grandson to light candles near the statue.

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