An Italian member of the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq has resigned. Marco Calamai, a counselor of the Coalition Provisional Authority, accused the Bush administration of inefficiency and failing to understand Iraq and complained that the British and Americans had marginalized the Italians. He added that only an interim authority headed by the United Nations could turn things around. Calamai told Italian reporters in Nasiriyah on Sunday that the failure of the coalition to understand Iraqi society had created “delusion, social discontent and anger” among Iraqis and allowed terrorism to “easily take root.”

Meanwhile in Italy, up to a quarter of a million mourners are expected to attend the state funeral today of the 19 Italians killed last week a Nasiriyah bombing.