Iraq – A Growing Mess

Iraq – A Growing Mess

May 30, 2006

President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair recently declared their hope that the formation of the new Iraqi government would be a turning point for Iraq's future. However, as with previous proclaimed "turning points," the most recent one has witnessed a spike in violence in its aftermath, indicating that the political progress in Iraq has had little correlation to the violence on the ground. Sixty-one American troops have lost their lives in Iraq this month, bringing to 2,467 the number of U.S. military members who have died since the war started in March 2003, with more than 18,000 soldiers wounded. The situation on the ground is not hopeless — a responsible redeployment of troops out of Iraq offers the best incentive for Iraqis to take over their country while allowing the U.S. to refocus on a balanced global strategy that will make Americans safer.

• Despite President Bush and Blair's happy talk, Iraq is still struggling to form a government. Ten days after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki formed a new cabinet, the security posts — the ministries of Interior, Defense, and National Security — remain vacant. American officials claim that "cracking down on the violence is unlikely to be achieved while jockeying over the security posts continues." The truth may be, however, that even the announcement of new cabinet ministers for security will have little impact on the violence because the Iraqi forces are largely controlled by militias and other elements loyal to terrorists and religious clerics.
  
  
• Journalists are not immune to the increasing violence in Iraq. Monday saw another violent day in Iraq, with 40 killed in a series of bombings, including two from a CBS News crew who were killed when a car bomb exploded as they were working on a story about American troops in Iraq on Memorial Day (CBS News war correspondent Kimberly Dozier sustained serious head injuries from the explosion). The deaths of the two CBS staffers "raised to more than 70 the number of journalists killed in Iraq in the 38 months since the American-led invasion," including at least 47 Iraqis.
  
  
• Unlike the Bush non-policy, there are sensible plans to achieve success in Iraq. American Progress's plan for Iraq, “Strategic Redeployment 2.0,” (PDF) states: "Iraq’s leaders need to understand that the United States is not going to serve as a crutch indefinitely and that no one is going to solve their problems for them." The plan calls for the gradual reduction of forces at a rate of 9,000 per month, to 60,000 by the end of 2006, and to virtually zero by the end of 2007. The concept appears to have the endorsement of Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki, who has declared that Iraqi "security forces will be capable of taking over the security portfolio in all Iraqi provinces within one year and a half."