by Aamer Madhani
On the heels of tough fighting in southern Iraq and renewed concerns over strains on the U.S. military, the conversation on America's long-term prospects in Iraq has shifted once again, creating an altered backdrop for an appearance on Capitol Hill this week by Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker.
The much-anticipated visit from the U.S. commander and the senior American diplomat in Iraq comes days after Gen. Richard Cody, the Army's departing vice chief of staff, warned that lengthy and repeated deployments are placing "a significant risk" on the largest branch of the military.
The political landscape has been further changed by renewed violence in two of Iraq's largest cities. On Sunday, rockets slammed into the fortified Green Zone and a military base in Baghdad, killing three U.S. troops and wounding 31 others. At least 20 Iraqis were killed in the capital as U.S. and Iraqi forces battled militiamen loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr. This followed a six-day campaign in Basra by the Shiite-dominated Iraqi army — aided by U.S. and British troops—against Sadr's Mahdi Army militia, a battle that ended without a clear winner.
Critics of last year's buildup of nearly 30,000 troops in Iraq say the inconclusive end to the battle—some believe it left Sadr with a strengthened hand—underscores that the Iraqi government has made little progress on the security or political fronts.
"The surge is prolonging instability, not creating the conditions for unity as the president claims," said retired Lt. Gen. William Odom, who headed the National Security Agency under President Ronald Reagan. "More disturbing, Prime Minister [Nouri al-] Maliki has initiated military action and then dragged in U.S. forces to help his own troops destroy his Shiite competitors."
U.S. military officials and proponents of the surge have launched a spirited defense of the troop buildup, dismissing talk that events in Basra were a setback. Walid Phares, a senior fellow at the conservative Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said that with the assault on Basra the al-Maliki government put Sadr and his followers on notice that militia control of Basra won't be tolerated.
"We have to wait and see what happens next," said Phares, who directs the foundation's Future Terrorism Project. "This could be the Maliki government sending the message that what we did in Baghdad and the Sunni triangle against Al Qaeda [in Iraq] is what we we're preparing to do next in the south."
Click here to read more in today's Chicago Tribune.
• 
• 
• 
• 
Comments
Hey al-Maliki! Thanks for the help!
This is called a power grab.
Some democracy, huh?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7334402.stm
Posted by: C.Morris | April 7, 2008 9:41 AM
When will our government except the idea, that we have limited to no ability to create stability in Iraq. Now that the hate and animosity that these various groups have toward each other, an apparently held under control by Sadam Hussein, have been unleased, only those parties who reside in or commited to Iraq can get the horses back in the barn. We have no long term commitment to Iraq, other than prehaps its oil, so its naive to think that we can resolve things there.
Posted by: marc | April 7, 2008 10:10 AM
I served under (way, way under) General Odom when he was the Army Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence. He is a very intelligent and honest man. Never the less, he displayed no faith in Human Intelligence, and essentially dismantled us in that regard. This has directly led to the condition we find ourselves in today. That is having to build a human intelligence function under wartime conditions. Many of our problems in Iraq would never have happened if we just "knew the right people" to start with. I don't blame General Odom, his was the common wisdom of the time.
Posted by: John Birch | April 7, 2008 10:31 AM
"JON KYL SPEAKS"
WE HAVEN'T TURNED A BLIND EYE ON AMERICA.
WE DIDN'T FABRICATE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION.
THAT'S OLD NEWS.
THE NEW NEWS IS THE NEW NEWS AND THE GENERAL ON THE GROUND HAS THE NEW NEW NEW NEWS.
"THE SURGE IS GOING GREAT" FOR EXXON, UNICAL, CHEVRON, TEXACO AND THE MALIKI BACKED GOVERNMENT.
"THE SURGE IS GOING GREAT" THAT IS WHY NO LEAVE FOR YOU.
IRAQ IS "SELF-EVIDENT" AND THE IRAQI PEOPLE WILL HOLD ALL TRUTHS TO BE JUST THAT.
"IMMUNITY" PROTECTION LIABILITY IS THE KEY TO THE END OF THE "SURGE"
GIVE MY PRESIDENT IMMUNITY AND HE WILL GIVE YOU BACK YOUR SON, DAUGHTER, NEIGHBOR, AND OR FRIENDS.
BECAUSE WITHOUT IT, WHO KNOWS WHAT "THE ENFORCER" WILL DO.
YA'LL GET BACK TO ME NOW HEAR!
Posted by: rOGER mORRIS | April 7, 2008 2:54 PM
Many of our problems in Iraq would never have happened if we just "knew the right people" to start with. I don't blame General Odom, his was the common wisdom of the time.
_________________________
So in other words, shrub and president cheney are morons? They have destroyed the American military, American security, and have betraedus. Ok, we know that. Help us some more. How bad is the current mis-administration. How many impeachment charges do you think we can prove against them? How long do you think cheney and shrub should spend in jail for the murder of American troops and innocent Iraqi children? SHould we draft the Bush twins and ship them to Basra? We want to know your opinions on these and many other questions. Help us formulate a plan to Make.The.Worst.Vice.President.In.The.History.Of.The.Universe pay for his misdeeds and his lying to the American public.
Posted by: rncbs | April 7, 2008 6:50 PM
mcbs,
How bad? It will take a decade just to figure out what these cretins have done to us, let alone putting it right....
Posted by: The Lenin Sisters | April 7, 2008 9:06 PM