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Congress split on keeping Iraq together

Kurdish independence is gaining support on Capitol Hill but the administration still supports Baghdad.
U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (C) and U.S. Rep. William Delahunt (R) are joined by World Uighur Congress President Rebiya Kadeer (L) as they hold a news conference to introduce a U.S. House resolution about the Uighur protests while outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, July 10, 2009.      REUTERS/Larry Downing (UNITED STATES POLITICS) - RTR25J6S

Lawmakers of both parties urged the Barack Obama administration to rethink its support for a united Iraq during a July 23 hearing on the threat posed by Islamist militants.

The rapid gains by the Islamic State group (IS) have rekindled calls for a reassessment of US policy in the country. Pro-Kurdish lawmakers say the time is ripe to back the Kurds' calls for greater autonomy and even independence, pointing to the Peshmerga militia's ability to keep militants at bay while the dispirited national army cut and ran.

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