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Iraq to hold unity meet

BAGHDAD: The U.S. military on Wednesday reported the deaths of nine soldiers and one Marine, bringing October's death toll to 69, an average of almost four a day and putting the month on course to be one of the deadliest month's since U.S. forces invaded 44 months ago.

Should the pace of death for American forces continue, the October death toll would exceed that of January 2005, when 107 U.S. troops died. The only higher months would be November 2004, at 137 and April, 2004, at 135.

According to an Associated Press count, October is also shaping up to be the deadliest month for Iraqis since the AP began tracking deaths in April 2005. In October, more than 767 Iraqis have been killed in war-related violence, an average of 45 every day.

Iraq's government said on nesday a much-anticipated national reconciliation conference aimed at building political consensus and stemming spirallng sectarian fighting would be held in Baghdad on November 4.

That followed a meeting hosted by Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah in Mecca on Saturday between prominent Shia and Sunni clerics that sought to hammer out an agreement on ending sectarian fighting.

The reconciliation conference was originally scheduled to start on Friday, but had been indefinitely postponed for unspecified ``emergency reasons.''

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki took office just over four months ago at the helm of what is formally termed a national unity government and has vowed to implement a 24-point national reconciliation plan to heal the nation's severe political wounds. — AP

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