The U.S. military said Sunday that the number of attacks by militants in the last week dropped to a level not seen in Iraq since March 2004.
About 300 violent incidents were recorded in the seven-day period that ended Friday, down from a weekly high of nearly 1,600 in mid-June last year, according to a chart provided by the military.
Not that the LA Times is so sure it's all real:
The announcement appeared aimed at allaying fears that an uprising by militiamen loyal to radical Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada Sadr could unravel security gains since 28,500 additional American troops were deployed in Iraq in a buildup that reached its height in June.
Unfortunately in a companion piece in today's LA Times is another article which seems to also help allay fears that an uprising by the Mahdi Army could "unravel security gains". According to this article, Iraqis have become rather disenchanted with Sadr's crew:
"I had faith. I believed in something," Lami said of his days hoisting a gun for Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. "Now, I will never fight with them."
[...]
"People are fed up with them because of their extremism and the problems they are causing," said Rafid Majid, a merchant in central Baghdad. Like many others interviewed across the capital, he said the good deeds the group performs no longer were enough to make up for the hardships endured by ordinary Iraqis who just want to go to work and keep their families safe.
Instead they're beginning to throw their support behind the ISF and the Iraqi Army. Given, both have to perform and deliver, but it would seem to even a casual observer that the tide seems to be turning.
Ahmed, a 29-year-old Mahdi Army member who did not want his full name used for fear of being arrested or attacked, said the group was the only "honorable resistance" to the U.S. presence. He said people in poor neighborhoods depended on it for handouts of fuel, help with funeral costs, and food distribution. But he acknowledged that as fighting continued, support dwindled.
"Of course some people are expressing their resentment and anger against the Mahdi Army, thinking that without them, they would not be targeted and their lives would not be badly affected," he said.
Another Mahdi Army member expressed anger after Sadr in late April warned of "open war" against U.S. forces if operations targeting Sadr strongholds did not stop.
"Did he mention that the 'open war' . . . will be among the houses or residential areas?" said the man, a Mahdi Army street leader who feared having his name published. "Fight? . . . I will not join the fight."
man i looked again at that email and i musta been drunk when i wrote it.
Anyways i believe the big political test will be in October when Iraqi elections are held. Which way the votes will swing and to which candidates will be a test for the future of democracy in Iraq.
The U.S. military said Sunday that the number of attacks by militants in the last week dropped to a level not seen in Iraq since March 2004.
Remember those heady days of March 2004? McQ was telling us that we had Iraq wrapped up, and that success was just around the corner, and that non-Bush bots were fools for believing that things would not continue to get better? Remember those days? I do. In spades.
The next month, April 2004, 135 Americans troops were killed.
McQ was telling us that we had Iraq wrapped up, and that success was just around the corner, and that non-Bush bots were fools for believing that things would not continue to get better? Remember those days? I do.
Well then you’ll have no problem producing examples, will you?
I notice, however, other than demonstrate a deficient memory, you’ve not addressed the substance of the post at all.
