Who is hoping for civil war in Iraq?

An elections poster of the 'Unified Iraqi National Community' of Ibrahim al-Jafari is covered by blood and debris after a car bomb explosion in front of a Shiite mosque in Baghdad, Friday , Jan 21, 2005. A car bomb exploded outside a Shiite mosque in Baghdad Friday where worshippers were celebrating a major Muslim holiday, killing at least 13 people and wounding 40, police and hospital officials said, the country's latest violence in the lead-up to this month's elections. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

BBC News:Election drives attacks on Shia
On Friday a number of people were killed in a car bomb attack during Eid celebrations at a Shia mosque in Baghdad. The tactical thinking behind attacks on Shia Muslims by suspected Sunni militants is clear. The aim is to stir up and strengthen sectarian divisions, by provoking a violent Shia reaction to attacks. The attackers hope to make Iraq ungovernable through a civil war along religious lines. Link


In this volatile, hate-filled environment, you would have hoped that all parties currently in a position of authority would think very carefully before issuing statements - on or off the record - that could possibly feed the sectarian hatred that seems to be building. If the latest statement apparently coming from Zarqawi is to be believed, it would seem to fit with a
strategy of fomenting civil war. However, what is more concerning, is the motivation behind statements such as this from last week - which related to the 'possible' formation of 'Death Squads' made up of Kurdish and Shia militia to target leaders of the insurgency. What was the purpose of this statement, which clearly feeds the flames? Was it a mere slip of the tongue from someone who should have known better, or is it evidence that it is not just the likes of Zarqawi who is hoping for an ungovernable post-election Iraq? The kind of Iraq that certainly could not be controlled by the imature and undermanned Iraqi forces alone. Those who have bothered to research previous US and UK covert operations will know that anything is indeed possible.