"Enough talk, now act," Iraq unity forum tells PM

BAGHDAD, Dec 18 (Reuters) Iraq's government must offer a timetable for a US troop withdrawal and repeal a law banning ex-members of Saddam Hussein's party from public and military jobs, delegates to a reconciliation conference said today.

''It is in the hands of the government now,'' said Naseer al- Ani, spokesman of the unity forum held in Baghdad over the weekend, which was aimed at easing soaring sectarian violence.

The conference brought together mid-level Shi'ite, Sunni Arab and ethnic Kurdish politicians with members of Saddam's Baath party in exile and representatives of armed groups.

Most of the meetings were held behind closed doors in the heavily fortified Green Zone.

The committees also called on the government to disband militias, blamed for most of the communal bloodshed in Iraq, delegates said.

''If the government implements the recommendations it will be a real step forward,'' Ani said.

Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called in his opening remarks on Saturday for the return of all officers of Saddam's disbanded army -- an overture to disaffected Sunni Arabs.

He also urged a review of ''debaathification'', which has purged former Baath party members from public office.

Officials who took part in the talks described Maliki's words as positive but said they were not enough in themselves.

''It is good he said that, but he should not stop at saying it. He should also work on making it happen,'' said a Sunni Arab official who took part in the conference.

Shortly after the US invasion to topple Saddam, US administrator Paul Bremer dissolved the Iraqi army, a move that experts said drove many Sunni Arab soldiers and officers into the mostly Sunni insurgency fighting the Shi'ite-led government.

Maliki, who is struggling to rein in violence between Sunni Arabs and majority Shi'ites, has said Iraq's US-trained forces will be ready to take over security from US forces by June.

Washington says it will send its 140,000 US troops home as Iraqi forces become more capable and assume security, but it has refused to offer a timetable for withdrawal.

Maliki, who took office seven months ago, has pledged several times to disband militias, many of which are tied to political parties in his coalition. Sunni Arabs accuse Shi'ite militias of targeting their community.

Ani said another reconciliation conference would follow in two months, with wider participation from representatives of armed groups that want to join the political process.

But he echoed comments by many political analysts that time was running out for Maliki.

''If the government puts the recommendations on hold then this conference will be like the other ones: no results,'' Ani said.

Reuters AB GC2218