ACCEPTING THEIR SURRENDER:

U.S. officials talking to insurgents (PAUL GARWOOD, 2/09/06, Chicago Sun-Times)

The meetings, described as being in the initial stage, have not included members of al-Qaida in Iraq or like-minded religious extremists, the diplomats said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

U.S. officials have said establishing a dialogue with the insurgents was difficult because of the lack of a unified command structure among the various groups and the absence of a leadership capable of speaking for most of them.

Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, said the United States is involved in talks on promoting Iraq's political process with ''all sorts of groups.''

However, a Western diplomat in Baghdad who is familiar with the dialogue said the U.S. was reaching out to ''Sunni Arab nationalists'' and ''some Islamists from the Shiite and Sunni sides,'' many of whom have grievances about jobs and reconstruction money.

''We hear all the time that they are interested in coming in but we haven't seen signs,'' the diplomat said. ''We want to see attacks stopped. The question is, can they help end the violence if they want to join.''