US, Iraq opposes Saudi plan for all-Muslim force

"The Iraqi interim government had some real concerns about having troops from a neighboring country inside Iraq. The multinational commanders also had some concerns about forces operating outside the chain of command structure," said White House spokesman Scott McClellan, commenting on a media report.

New York daily Newsday reported on Monday that President Bush rebuffed the Saudi initiative because the force would not have been under US command.

Such a move would raise questions about the Bush administration's repeated assertions that it was eager to have other countries send troops to Iraq to ease the burden on American forces, it said.

Saudi Arabia announced it hoped to organize such a force in July during a visit by Secretary of State Colin Powell.

But several Muslim countries, including Indonesia, Egypt and Pakistan were cool to the idea, citing the increasing violence in Iraq as well as concerns about possibly having to serve under US command.

The United Nations was also uncertain whether it wanted its staff protected by a force of one religious group rather than its usual multilateral approach, UN sources said.

But Newsday said Crown Prince Abdullah personally lobbied Bush to agree to deploy a unit of several hundred troops from Muslim nations to help prepare for January elections.

Washington, the newspaper said, turned down the proposal because the plan would have meant troops being under UN control rather than the control of US commanders who lead the multinational force now intended to ensure security in Iraq.

AP adds: Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi announced plans Monday to extend a cash-for-weapons programme for Shia fighters in Baghdad's Sadr City to cities nationwide in an attempt to disarm the country.

In Fallujah, the focal point of the Sunni rebellion, hopes that peace talks could resume there quickly were dashed when the city's chief negotiator, Sheik Khaled al-Jumeili, ruled out restarting talks soon despite his release Monday from US custody.

US and Iraqi forces have vowed to retake the city by force if negotiations are not successful, and the US military announced late Monday that it had destroyed several safehouses and weapons storage sites linked to terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.