After giving reasons for why we should not have invaded Iraq in the first place I said that, once there, we really were in no position to bail out in the short-term. I suggested that if the coalition withdrew from Iraq then they’d leave the country facing a civil war.
My reasoning - such that it was - was that the coalition could keep the opposing sides apart long enough for the installation of something vaguely democratic while in the meantime training the Iraqi security services to carry out the formidable task of maintaining order once the coalition had left.
Recent events seem to be suggesting that one of my underlying objections to the war - that you can’t just install your own personal favoured government system in a country that has its own ideas about how it wants to be governed - is proving to be so. It seems that the Iraqi security forces - in Basra at least - are so heavily infiltrated by the very people they’re supposed to be fighting that the British Army is claiming to be in control of only about 25% of them. The infiltrators are going to be representing religious and tribal groupings and are probably positioning themselves for the final showdown when power is up for grabs and the strongest will get the booty.
If this is the case and if the declaration of war against Shi’ites is being taken seriously by Sunnis then maybe the civil war that is looming is about to become a fact.
If a civil war is inevitable should the coalition withdraw? Where is the advantage of being the common enemy of all three factions?
Would it be better to acknowledge an impending civil war (if, indeed, it’s agreed that one is inevitable) and actively partition the country rather than wait for it to take place in an uncontrolled - and violent - manner?
Or should we dig in and simply fight it out?
The Iraq situation seems muddled and confusing. What do people think we should do next?
One bright side to this is that all the anti-american stuff about how much better we are at the hearts and minds side of things has been shown for what it was all along - wishful thinking and bigotry. The British Army has simply kept out of the way. As for what we do next, I suggest two things. In Basra and the south, we actually set about helping secular and democratic organisations. In Britain, we stop imagining that because insurgents have infiltrated part of the security forces, that they somehow represent the will of Iraq; and we stop assuming that Zarquawi speaks for Iraqi Shias.
Comment by James Hamilton — September 21, 2005 @ 2:30 pm
Good points James. I agree.
Comment by David Vance — September 21, 2005 @ 8:40 pm
James Hamilton`s suggestion supported by David Vance that “The British Army has simply kept out of the way” is brought into question by recent reports pointing towards covert bombing activities conducted by British soldiers.
Don`t read this article it`s off the official theme.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=20050920&articleId=972
The mass media just bleats on regardless ignoring why the Basra population have become agitated against the British.
I know, I know, this is just a “conspiracy” so we can pretend that it is not happening and ignore the criminal behaviour it suggests.
How useful it is for those who seek power over society to be able to inculcate a Pavlovian censorship and memory in the minds of the populous it desires to exploit and destroy.
Get back to the official theme - Muslim conspiracy theory - media tells the truth - politicians never engage in criminal behaviour.
Comment by Christopher Brooks — September 21, 2005 @ 11:37 pm
Mr Brooks, I do believe you are learning a new skill - brevity.
Comment by DE — September 22, 2005 @ 3:51 pm