US Hands over Karbala Province to Green Zone Government

A few hours ago, Karbala Province southwest of Baghdad became the 8th province out of 18 to be handed over to Iraq-Namese security forces. The Americans and the Iraq-Namese said that the locals were ready and able to handle things themselves. Whether they are or not, the time allotted for the American “surge” of troops to make a difference is running out. There is no choice but to hand things over sooner rather than later.

Ambassador Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus, said in a joint statement announcing today's handover, “Iraqi security forces in Karbala have been successfully operating independently, maintaining their own security for the past three months. Working with local government officials, they have demonstrated their readiness to assume responsibility for the province. Today the responsibility is theirs.”

Three months, is it? On August 28, just two months ago, there was a major Shi’ite religious festival. There was also more than a little interdenominational violence. The clashes left 52 people dead and 289 hurt. Major-General Rick Lynch, the US commander for the area, said, “Of course there’s violence in the area, but not nearly of the magnitude that would cause me to be troubled by it.” He added, “This place is about a struggle for power and influence and there are indeed inter-Shia rivalries where different groups are trying to be in charge and sometimes they revert to violence, but it’s not at the magnitude that’s got me concerned.” One wonders how many of his troops need to die before he is troubled – probably far fewer than 52, and most likely just 1.

The problem is the militias have infiltrated to police and security forces to the point that it would be better to dispense with them altogether and give the militias formal status. Were that to happen, of course, it would be an admission that the writ of the Green Zone government doesn’t really even extend to the border of the Green Zone in Baghdad. Better from a public relations standpoint to let the Badr Brigades run Karbala while in police and interior ministry uniforms.

One must also remember that the Mahdi Army of Moqtada al-Sadr, which opposes the Badr organization, has been ordered to maintain a ceasefire that extends for a few more months. When that clock runs down, the inter-Shi’ite violence will likely get even General Lynch to pay attention.

© Copyright 2007 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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