Reuters reported yesterday that in a video on an Iraqi website, the leader of a Sunni insurgent coalition led by al Qaeda has called for the setting up of a separate Islamic state in Baghdad and in the provinces of Anbar, Diyala, Kirkuk, Salahedddin, Nineveh and parts of Babel and Wasit-- all areas where there are large concentrations of Sunni Arabs. The move follows approval by Iraq's parliament of procedures for creating federal regions that could lead to a Shi'ite state in the center and south of the country.
UPDATE: The full text of the statement published this morning indicates that the Mujahideen Shura Council actually declared the establishment of an Islamic state in parts of Iraq. (Kavkaz Center).
