Rumsfeld Tells Iraq to Be Quick

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld on Tuesday urged Iraq’s new leaders to quickly fill top ministry posts and draft a new constitution.

On a quick visit to Iraq, Rumsfeld praised the incoming government’s strides toward democracy. But he warned officials against corruption and political revenge and said that establishing an able government was a key step toward stabilizing the country.

Rumsfeld said the U.S. hoped the new government would include “highly competent people who are not going to politicize security forces.”

“Anything that would delay that or disrupt that as a result of turbulence or incompetence or corruption in government would be unfortunate,” Rumsfeld told reporters.

A number of Iraqis in and out of government greeted Rumsfeld’s comments warmly and said they agreed with the priorities he had laid out in his comments.

“We are planning to have the [permanent] government as soon as possible, but you know this is the beginning of democratization in Iraq,” President Jalal Talabani said.

Rumsfeld also met with Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari, who was named to his post last week. Jafari is expected to announce a Cabinet this month that will manage the interim government’s many ministries.

Once the Cabinet is named, the transitional National Assembly will turn to drafting a constitution by mid-August, although the law allows the deadline to be extended by as much as six months.

In recent days, the assembly has been discussing a controversial proposal to open the files of the preceding interim government to root out alleged corruption and influence of Baathists -- members of deposed President Saddam Hussein’s ruling party.

Some observers say that could lead to witch hunts and distract the government from more important tasks, such as rebuilding the country and ending the insurgency.

Iraqi political scientist Hassan Bazzaz said Rumsfeld’s comments were a call for moderation, and he argued that searching for signs of corruption or Baathist influence in the previous government would only slow the formation of a new administration.

“This is a call to us to work on unity, not to differentiate among themselves because of their friendships or religion or ethnicities,” he said of Rumsfeld’s remarks. “This is a really good message.”

Rumsfeld’s visit coincided with announcements by Iraqi and U.S. forces that they had captured several key figures in the insurgency.

Iraqi security on Tuesday apprehended Fadhil Ibrahim Mahmud Mashadani, an alleged insurgent financier, in a northeastern Baghdad neighborhood, officials said. The officials described Mashadani as a leader of Hussein’s military bureau and a crucial link between current Baathist leaders in Syria and insurgent fighters in Iraq.

Elsewhere in the country, a car bomb exploded in Mosul near a U.S. convoy, killing five Iraqis and wounding three.

An assassination attempt on a mid-level Interior Ministry official in the Adil district of Baghdad killed a bodyguard and wounded three other Iraqis.

Associated Press was used in compiling this report.