The truce between the Shiite-led Iraqi government and its Sunni opposition was broken after a wave of violent attacks in Iraq stepped up the political tension to unprecedented levels, especially when Abdul Malak al-Saadi, a prominent Sunni cleric, accused Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of blocking the dialogue initiative.
The bombs that went off in Sunni and Shiite areas last week resulted in more than 450 dead and wounded.