Don't ask how bad the government is functioning in Iraq right now--not good. But the Iraq and Coalition forces are making some impressive gains right now.
There's a reason for the increased number of US casualties over the last little while in Iraq. Instead of sitting back on the FOBs (Forward Operating Bases), more of our soldiers are taking it to the terrorists. And while the Iraqi government is seen by some as on life support, the military is making great strides in securing areas of the country and of Baghdad. Here are some highlights:
* In those of Baghdad neighborhoods where terrorists held sway, Iraqi security forces, backed by U.S. troops, are establishing an effective presence, allowing a slow return to normal. Reassured by the troop presence, the inhabitants of at least one neighborhood, Amiriyah, have chased away a terror outfit entrenched there since 2003.
Reports indicate that in the last 10 weeks the various armed enemies of new Iraq have suffered their heaviest losses since the start of the conflict four years ago.
* the insurgents are suffering a significant number of defections while an unknown number are believed to have left Iraq, presumably to pursue "jihad" in other Muslim countries.
* Coalition and Iraqi forces have seized weapons from the insurgents on an unprecedented scale. More than 20 bomb-making factories have also been discovered and neutralized in and around Baghdad.
* The morale of both U.S. and Iraqi troops has been boosted by the decision by the Democrat Party to tone down its campaign against U.S. military commitment to Iraq. There is a feeling in Baghdad that the possibility of America opting for a cut-and-run strategy has decreased. That, in turn, has encouraged the Iraqi military to stop hedging its bets and enter the battle with greater resolve.
Additionally, residents in Baquba are helping the coalition forces rout out the insurgents after having been terrorized for months.
7 comments:
mullah cimoc say each ameriki having two gonad so jealous of mujahid fighters in Baquoba.
usa army say of them mujahid: a 'hardline group of fighters who have no intention of leaving.'
These hardline man all having the two gonad.
Ameriki having the two gonad him understand. But so many ameriki now the feminzied like woman not having even one gonad.
USA media make all ameriki man accepting the woman to rule over him. The war reportr him the woman. the power person in tv show him the woman. this to make ameriki man the obedient.
Now ameirki society becoming so the sick. Is the punish for cruel and torture in iraq?
Google: mighty wurlitzer +cia learn how ameriki media so control now. all for serve masters in tel aviv.
also: ameriki woman now so slut with LBT (low back tattoo) and the so skinny and cannot having the child, just loving dog and cat.
Just for the sake of having an intelligible comment here: General Petraeus knows damn well that this offensive is anti-insurgency, not counter-insurgency. As such it's a temporary accomplishment (cf. Fallujah), at the cost of many people permanently losing their lives.
At this point, it's a given that the US Army and Marines are going to pack up and redeploy no later than January 2009. That's the operational and political reality .
Considering the size of the force, you're right in the long term, but he is employing counter-insurgency tactics. Despite, for example, how well things are going in Baquba, if the Iraqi forces aren't capable of holding onto the gains there when the Americans move on to something else, then it will be a temporary accomplishment.
Frank, check out this article by Joe Klein in Time magazine: "In Iraq, Operation Last Chance"
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1638128,00.html?xid=site-cnn-partner
Sample quote: "The current operation, Phantom Thunder... is not classic counterinsurgency warfare. It is not about protecting a population but about attacking a historically elusive enemy. This is not so easily done in Iraq."
Why I think it is at least the best attempt at classic counter-insurgency with the number of troops available (quotes from the Time article):
"how much more knowledgeable the U.S. military is about Iraq now than when [Petraeus] first came over with the Operation Iraqi Freedom invasion force in 2003"
"He has said a military victory isn't possible, that Iraq can be stabilized only through a political solution that honors all sides in the conflict"
You can also read in the same article that Ambassador Crocker thinks the Iraqi government is going to collapse.
I think he's right. al Maliki has never really been in favor of peace, but has been partial to the Shia and Iranians.
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