"Al Qaeda kills Sunnis the most, and you don't know what they want," he said.

Shabiha have been accused of killing Sunnis, prompting kidnappings and killing of Alawites by the Sunni side.

As Shiite death squads have killed Sunnis over the past year, Sunni politicians, too, have hardened their stand.

The Iraqi security forces are too heavily Shiite and are full of people who want to kill Sunnis, he said, his cellphone silently flashing.

"He started against the Americans, but he moved on to killing Sunnis," said Sattar Awad, a 29-year-old resident of the district.

"When Shiites kill Sunnis, there is no response, because much of this killing is done by militias connected to the government."

They say that Shiite militias posing as Interior Ministry forces have killed Sunnis across Baghdad.

"That would be a concern if they were using smuggling money to blow up American soldiers or kill Sunnis or do anything that could harm the unity of the country," the official said.

"This fighting, killing Sunnis and Shias, this is deep in the history of these tribes," said Husham al-Madfai, an architect and history buff.

They think the solution is to kill Sunnis.