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The Iraqi government uses its own army to fight Shiite militias. Is that bad news?

by Babel-Fish | April 6, 2008 at 05:25 pm

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Since the British forces withdrew back to the airport 5 miles from the center of Basra there has been a development not that of instant citizen unrest in fact the trouble has been low keyed.

Basra became under control of the Iraq forces to include the new police force, this forces is administered by the present Iraq administrators of the new Iraqi government. What has happened Mahdi Army and other militias that have carved up Basra since the withdrawal of British forces. Now the Iraqi government have been told that they should fully impose their powers of administration, Basra has became one of the first obstacles showing the need to apply national law and order.

The Iraqi forces have been sent in to disarm the Shiite militias and regain national authority in Basra, the American generals though happy that more responsibility has been placed within the hands of the Iraq military, feel the Iraq military has not the strength to go a head with this mission with out US support. On this issue I am wondering what the British commander has been told not to do, as it was initially understood that the British forces where the instant reserve to back the Iraq forces in Basra. One thing is for sure he is properly fuming.

In my opinion Basra shows what would happen after the main handover of Iraq, I really think that what ever future plans are laid that this picture shown by Basra will be the same picture everywhere else in Iraq. This is not going to be solved by delaying the irrevocable carbon copy, there will be a power struggle.

Is this a test to see if the Iraqi army can in fact regain authority or is the mission loaded against them thinking that they will fail an attempt to prove US military needs to stay for many years hence?