Al-Qaida in Iraq calls on Sunnis to take up arms against Shiite-led government
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}An al-Qaida-affiliated group in Iraq has called on Sunnis to take up arms against the Shiite-led government, as sectarian tensions and large Sunni protests increase.
In an audio statement posted Friday on the website of the Islamic State of Iraq, spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani says Sunnis can bow to the Shiites or to take up arms to restore "dignity and freedom."
Al-Adnani says recent Sunni protests against Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki mark the end of Sunni humiliation in Iraq.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Thousands of Sunnis rallied Friday in the city of Fallujah in the western province of Anbar.
Protesters complain of official discrimination, saying anti-terrorism laws and other policies largely target minority Sunnis. The protests were sparked by the December arrests of bodyguards of a senior Sunni politician.