So how’s Iraqification going, part II
As a follow-up to my previous post on the question of transfering police and security functions to Iraqis, it’s worth linking and quoting from Spencer Ackerman’s Iraq’d blog. Ackerman — hardly a fan of the administration’s Iraq policy in the past — was a huge fan of the raid on foreign insurgents that took place ...
As a follow-up to my previous post on the question of transfering police and security functions to Iraqis, it's worth linking and quoting from Spencer Ackerman's Iraq'd blog. Ackerman -- hardly a fan of the administration's Iraq policy in the past -- was a huge fan of the raid on foreign insurgents that took place yesterday. Why is Ackerman in such a good mood about this raid?:
As a follow-up to my previous post on the question of transfering police and security functions to Iraqis, it’s worth linking and quoting from Spencer Ackerman’s Iraq’d blog. Ackerman — hardly a fan of the administration’s Iraq policy in the past — was a huge fan of the raid on foreign insurgents that took place yesterday. Why is Ackerman in such a good mood about this raid?:
It’s hard to overstate how fantastic a development this is, but let’s try. I wrote last December about insurgent overconfidence. Is this ever a case in point! Insurgents have had their bloodiest successes in urban areas. Establishing training camps in remote locations plays to the strengths of the U.S. military and its Iraqi proteges by offering discrete targets to be wiped off the face of the earth, without the prospect of civilian casualties to inflame the sensibilities of the broader Iraqi population. What’s more, according to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, an intelligence tip came from nearby residents about the precise location of the camp, indicating a disgust for the jihadists in the heart of the Sunni Triangle. (We’ve seen this from civilians before in areas devoid of U.S. troops that the jihadists infest.) And not only did the police commandos lead the raid, they fought for hours despite taking casualties. (Though not many: According to The New York Times, Iraqi commandos went in massively, with a force of between 500 and 700. Seven were killed and six wounded, which should say something about their training and fighting prowess.) A quick word about the politics of the raid. The apparent isolation of the jihadists from Sunnis in the area is one the most hopeful signs we’ve gotten yet from Iraq. At the risk of succumbing to wishful thinking, it suggests a fracturing of the insurgency, which is crucial to victory, might be within sight.
Developing….
Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner
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