Thursday, March 20, 2008

Muqtada al-Sadr: Victim of Surge in Iraq

Remember Muqtada al-Sadr? The "Sadr City" Sadr? He made the cover of Newsweek last November (2007), with the magazine calling him the most dangerous man in Iraq.

He declared a cease-fire in Iraq last year, and extended it last month. The standard Associated Press article's lead paragraph had a familiar tone:

"Powerful Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr opted Friday to keep the cease-fire order for his Mahdi Army militia in place for another six months, a step that reinforces al-Sadr's importance while holding the specter of a spike in U.S. and Iraqi casualties at bay." International Herald Tribune (February 22, 2008).

Nothing new here: 'powerful anti-American leader ends violence in country where America started war.' Standard-issue establishment talking points.

Muqtada al-Sadr, Victim of American Success

I'm going to suggest an alternative interpretation of the facts.

Muqtada al-Sadr, defender of the Shiites against America (and Sunnis), had it made while Al Qaeda, and assorted militias and gangs in Iraq, were killing Shiite Muslims, Sunni Muslims, miscellaneous Muslims, non-Muslims, and anyone else who happened to be around.

Times were good for al-Sadr, as long as the coalition had a relatively light footprint in Iraq. Sure, some of his supporters got killed, but he had plenty. Besides, the survivors were even more convinced that they needed al-Sadr to protect them from Sunnis and Americans.

Disaster for al-Sadr : Outbreak of Peace

Then the current American administration started the 'troop surge,' and Iraqis in general caught on to the fact that it was Al Qaeda, not America, that was bombing and beheading their neighbors.

Violence went down. And al-Sadr's support (apparently) went down with it.

Hence the cease-fire.

Sounds paradoxical, but it makes sense: when you can't launch an effective attack, declare a cease-fire, use the lull to re-group, and hope for the best. It's worked for groups like Hamas, and there's no reason why al-Sadr shouldn't try the same tactic.

The idea that American efforts, particularly military efforts, can have positive results, goes against conventional wisdom. But conventional wisdom isn't always right.

I think this is one of those times.

Hope for Failure

There's still hope for the post-Vietnam 'America is always wrong' point of view, though.

The surge is ending.

There's even a chance that the coalition will pull out, quickly, from Iraq. If that happens, the odds are that the Iraqi military won't be able to keep the peace. Then, al-Sadr and all the other people who depend on death and destruction to stay in power will have a field day.

And, it will be 'the fault of America:' not because of the pullout, but because of the military actions that brought comparative peace to Iraq. Illogical, but that's the way we've been conditioned to associate. Not "think," "associate."

Post-Surge Iraq: Another View

Finally, a more conventional view of post-surge Iraq is in "What Happens After the Surge?" FOXNews (March 12, 2008). The op-ed writer points out that Iraq is making deals with Iran and China, and that Turkey has invaded Iraq.

That last item refers to what's going on up in Kurdistan. And it's a real issue.

I'm not as upset about those developments, though. America is making deals with China, when it comes to that. Iran and Iraq share a common border. It would be a little odd if the two nations didn't make economic deals.

No, I don't approve of China's policies: for one thing, I think of "Xizang" as "Tibet," even though China conquered their neighbor back in 1951. And I certainly don't approve of Iran's foreign or domestic policies.

But Iraq lives in a world where those countries exist. So do we. Like it or not, all nations have to deal with unpleasant and sometimes dangerous neighbors. Iraq is an independent nation. Their government doesn't need American permission to make deals.

I just hope that Iraqi leaders use good sense, running their country.

No comments:

Unique, innovative candles


Visit us online:
Spiral Light CandleFind a Retailer
Spiral Light Candle Store

Blogroll

Note! Although I believe that these websites and blogs are useful resources for understanding the War on Terror, I do not necessarily agree with their opinions. 1 1 Given a recent misunderstanding of the phrase "useful resources," a clarification: I do not limit my reading to resources which support my views, or even to those which appear to be accurate. Reading opinions contrary to what I believed has been very useful at times: sometimes verifying my previous assumptions, sometimes encouraging me to change them.

Even resources which, in my opinion, are simply inaccurate are sometimes useful: these can give valuable insights into why some people or groups believe what they do.

In short, It is my opinion that some of the resources in this blogroll are neither accurate, nor unbiased. I do, however, believe that they are useful in understanding the War on Terror, the many versions of Islam, terrorism, and related topics.