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Official says Iraqis resisting civil warNational security adviser blames sectarian violence on al Qaeda
 Iraq's national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, praises the resilience of the Iraqi people. SPECIAL REPORT
• Interactive: Who's who in Iraq
• Interactive: Sectarian divide
• Timeline: Bloodiest days for civilians
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSBAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraq's national security adviser said Sunday that violence from the past week is not a precursor to civil war between the country's religious factions. Instead, Mowaffak al-Rubaie blamed Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's al Qaeda in Iraq group for the event that instigated four days of sectarian violence -- the Wednesday bombing of Al-Askariya Mosque, also known as the Golden Mosque, a revered Shiite shrine in Samarra. "The blueprints of that unfortunate event, the blueprints of al Qaeda in Iraq is there," al-Rubaie told CNN's "Late Edition With Wolf Blitzer." "It is the same design, the same objective, which is civil war. They want to drive a wedge between the Sunni and the Shia." But he said, "The Iraqi people ... have shown al Qaeda in Iraq and the outside world that they will never be driven to the civil war." Shiites, many of whom were persecuted by Saddam Hussein's regime, make up about 60 percent of the population, while Sunnis account for 15 percent to 20 percent of the Iraqi people. Under Hussein, Shiites enjoyed power, but since the Iraqi ruler's ouster, they have been reluctant to join the process of forming a new government. Arrests follow mosque bombingAl-Rubaie said that Iraqi security forces had made 10 arrests -- four of them guards at the shrine -- and were following other leads to those behind the bombing. Although he initially was worried about the possibility of civil war when insurgents bombed the mosque, he said he had been impressed by the Iraqi people's resiliency. "The Shia are not the enemies of the Sunni, and the Sunni are not the enemies of the Shia," he said. "These two communities should not attack each other. They should join forces and attack Abu Musab al-Zarqawi." Al-Rubaie said he was convinced that the Iraqi security forces were ready to handle security in the country, with "more than 60 percent ... ready and prepared to take on the terrorists." "We need the multinational forces to be over the horizon," he said. "We need them for two things: logistical support and to continue training the Iraqi security forces." One Democratic senator said Sunday that he was concerned about power of the militias loyal to powerful religious figures. U.S. Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware told "Fox News Sunday" that the militias are "a major, major power." "But the real issue here is: Are the militias in control? Who controls the militias?" Biden asked. Al-Rubaie seemed unconcerned about the possibility that militias could become a security problem. "We cannot build a democratic system in Iraq with the militias in the country," he said. "We have a law which is reintegration and disbandment of the militias. Most of the militia organizations have signed this piece of law. They're going to reintegrate into normal life." Biden said it was important that the government was nonsectarian and the constitution was unifying. If not, he said, "... all the king's horses and all the king's men are not going to keep this country together." Al-Rubaie said the government had no "intention of putting any sectarian person into the security ministries or any ministries, for that matter. There is no place for sectarianism within the Iraqi government." He said the difficulties Iraq has faced in creating a democratic government were expected. "We're talking about a gradual process of transformation from absolute dictatorship to a full-blown democracy," he said, adding that he thought it would take at least a couple of months to form a new government following last month's elections. "I would like it to be formed as soon as possible, like a week or two, but realistically it will take longer," Al-Rubaie said. Sen. Carl Levin told ABC's "This Week" that the United States needs to pressure Iraqi lawmakers to form a government within the next few months. Levin, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, suggested the Bush administration should use the U.S. military presence as a means to apply that pressure. "Because there's no point in our staying if they don't get their political house in order," he said, indicating he would threaten to withdraw troops. He added that using U.S. troops to stifle sectarian violence would only make the situation worse. "We can't solve their problem for them," he said. 
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