mcclatchydc.com - 8/21/2008
—
BAGHDAD — A key pillar of the U.S. strategy to pacify Iraq is in danger of collapsing because the Iraqi government is failing to absorb tens of thousands of former Sunni Muslim insurgents who'd joined U.S.-allied militia groups into the country's security forces.
Comments
Blog Reactions
Baquba Raid Roils Sunni-Shiite Relations; Al-Maliki to Disband Awakening Councils
Informed Comment —
... McClatchy reports that the al-Maliki government is determined to disband the Sunni Arab Awakening Councils by November, and plans to arrest those who decline to give up their arms. The al-Maliki government views the councils as seedy guerrilla elements that must not be allowed to remained armed and cannot be trusted to join Iraqi security forces. The US created and pays for these Sunni Arab militias, which it used against the Qutbist vigilantes (radical fundamentalists). Some think that Iraq has another civil war in the offing. ...
Maliki's Aproach to Sunni Militias -- Politics as War By Other Means
The Washington Note —
... Kahl -- noting the slowdown in absorption of Sunni militia members into the Iraqi military and the assignment of humiliating jobs to those who were being incorporated into the central government's payroll - stated: ...
Related Content
McCain’s Free Media Pass
firedoglake.com 8/21/2008 — TPM's Josh Marshall is correct that "the national press is basically giving McCain a pass on the McCain campaign's double-talk about Obama's patriotism." McCain is not just questioning Obama's patriotism; he's lying about it.
But the ...
U.S. Out of Iraq by 2011
washingtonmonthly.com 8/21/2008 — U.S. OUT OF IRAQ BY 2011....Holy cats. According to the Wall Street Journal, we're getting out of Iraq:U.S. and Iraqi negotiators reached agreement on a security deal that calls for American military forces to leave Iraq's cities by next summer...
Key U.S. Iraq strategy in danger of collapse
mcclatchydc.com 8/21/2008 — BAGHDAD — A key pillar of the U.S. strategy to pacify Iraq is in danger of collapsing because the Iraqi government is failing to absorb tens of thousands of former Sunni Muslim insurgents who'd joined U.S.-allied militia groups into the ...
U.S., Iraq Are Said to Have Set Withdrawal Timetable
online.wsj.com 8/21/2008 — U.S. and Iraqi negotiators reached agreement on a security deal that calls for American military forces to leave Iraq's cities by next summer as a prelude to a full withdrawal of combat troops from the country by 2011.
After Decades, Iran Buys U.S. Wheat —
WSJ.com: Politics And Policy 8/21/2008
Iran's resumption of U.S. wheat purchases signals its limited options for large quantities of high-quality grain. The purchase this summer ends a 27-year hiatus, but doesn't indicate whether the trade represents larger, geopolitical developments.
Follow BeltwayBlips on Twitter
