Iraq needs unity government, with or without Maliki - France

PARIS (Reuters) - French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Friday that Iraq needed a government of national unity, with or without Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, to counter a Sunni rebel insurgency.

Faulting Maliki for failing to ensure a more inclusive form of government, Fabius said it was critical now to better involve Sunni moderates to avoid them siding with what he described as the "terrorist group" ISIL, an al Qaeda splinter organisation.