| In Mosul.
Insurgents attacked the Iraqi city of Mosul today. At least five police stations were overrun and looted for weapons, ammunition and body armor. They have attacked in numerous parts of the Sunni Triangle.
"Violence surged through the so-called Sunni triangle in central Iraq, with ambushes, bombings and mortar attacks jolting Tikrit, Kirkuk, Hawija, Samarra and the provincial capital of Ramadi, 30 miles west of Falluja, which is 35 miles west of Baghdad.", This from an article by Edward Wong of the NYTimes.
The response of the Iraqi government was to impose a curfew on selected cities, presumably cities where they think they can enforce it.
In terms of the American need to create order in Iraq and the conditions under which elections can be held, it appears we are making no progress. In a few days we will declare victory in Fallujah. We may even pull out leaving Iraqi forces to guard the city. It is unknown if they will be able to defend against insurgent attacks. It is probable the insurgents will not attack them directly, but continue with their pattern of ambushes, roadside bombings and suicide attacks. It does not matter if the Iraqis hold the city. The insurgents will continue to attack places that are not adequately defended.
I saw pictures of Marines blowing up weapons caches. The insurgents, given their attacks of today don't appear to be running out of weapons and ammunition. They have enriched themselves at the expense of the Iraqi police.
Our strategy in Iraq is one of repeated failure. We are losing the war. We need new leadership with a new strategy for winning. Time is running out. The timetable of our own creation is dominated by the elections. If the elections cannot be held in reasonable calm, then we will have failed, perhaps irrevocably.
Contemplate the consequences of failure in Iraq, given the commitment we have made, is frightening. We may not be considered a superpower any longer. The world will realize that we only dominate in certain situations and we will have taught our enemies how to defeat us. There the weakness and confusion we are demonstrating will invite attack.
Melvyn Polatchek |