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2 US 'declaration' a setback for
Maliki By Sami Moubayed
DAMASCUS - Sometimes, frequently nowadays,
one doubts the wisdom of decision-makers in
Washington. The case was clear, for example, with
Syria and Palestine. When President George W Bush
comes out to praise political prisoners in
Damascus, he completely ruins their credibility in
the Syrian Street, projecting them as stooges for
the United States. When he embraces Mahmud Abbas
of Palestine, the same impression is made on
ordinary Palestinians who immediately write off
their president as
a
puppet for Washington, making it difficult for him
- if not impossible - to discuss peace with
Israel.
The situation now applies to Iraq
as well.
For four years, the Americans
have been pushing for a security breakthrough in
Iraq. The White House has been desperate for a
"success story" to sell on Iraq to the American
public. Chances seemed slim earlier this summer as
an increasing number of Iraqi politicians walked
out on Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. By October,
his government had lost legitimacy, since it no
longer included Sunnis from the Iraqi Accordance
Front or Shi'ites from the Sadrist bloc.
The Americans held on to Maliki, fearing a
vacuum if he left. So desperate was the US
administration that it began funding and arming
Sunni tribesmen in Iraq to combat al-Qaeda. This
caused uproar in the Iraqi street, particularly
among Iraqi Shi'ites, who claimed that the Sunnis
would train their guns on both the Americans and
the Shi'ites the minute they were finished
fighting al-Qaeda.
They cited how US
support for Osama bin Laden backfired the minute
he was finished fighting the Soviets in the
Soviets in Afghanistan in the late 1980s. When
Bush came to Iraq, he had his picture taken with
Abdul-Sattar Abu Risheh, one of the cooperative
Sunni tribal leaders. Maliki described him as a
"national hero". Seventy-two hours later, Vice
President Tarek al-Hashemi announced a "reward"
(or as some would say punishment) for the Sunni
provinces working against al-Qaeda.
A
total of US$84 million would go to the
reconstruction of Ramadi, with an additional $50
million in compensation for its residents, along
with 6,000 job opportunities. Shortly afterwards,
Abu Risheh was assassinated near his home in
Ramadi. Maliki blamed al-Qaeda. It was a clear
message as to how far the militants were willing
to go to punish anybody working with the
Americans. Abu Risheh had not only fought
al-Qaeda, but lobbied relentlessly with government
authorities to amend the de-Ba'athification laws
that targeted the Sunni community, and restore
senior Sunnis to posts in the Iraqi army. Without
him, Maliki - and Bush - have one less friend in
Iraq.
And now, the Americans have done the
same thing to Maliki. Over the past 15 days, a lot
of positive news came in from Baghdad. One was a
significant improvement in local security,
estimated by Maliki at 77% better. Cafes -
abandoned by night since 2003 - were once again
swarming with Iraqis, thanks to the improved
security situation. An estimated 1,000 Iraqis were
returning to Iraq per day from neighboring Syria,
thanks to better security.
The reasons
varied. One was improved US and Iraqi patrolling
of Baghdad. Another was a pledge by Shi'ite cleric
Muqtada al-Sadr to bring all military activities
of his Mahdi Army to a six-month halt. He had been
accused of creating major disturbances in Sunni
districts. Also, armed Sunni militiamen (working
with the Americans) were able to keep al-Qaeda at
bay during the months of September-November.
Maliki seemed to be doing increasingly well.
The Iraqi Accordance Front, a Sunni bloc
with 44 seats in Parliament (out of 275) agreed to
reduce its demands and restore its six ministers
to the Maliki cabinet. The Sadrists decided to end
their decades-long animosity with the Supreme
Iraqi Council (SIIC) that is headed by Muqtada's
archenemy, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim. Both groups, who
control all Shi'ite militiamen in Iraq, forgot
their rivalry for Shi'ite dominance and decided to
unite in order to bring stability and security to
Iraq.
There was even speculation that
Muqtada would restore his ministers to the Maliki
cabinet when and if the Accordance Front withdrew
its August resignations. Iran, which has been
accused by the United States of funding terrorism
in Iraq, had seemingly also decided to cooperate
and reduce violence.
Things seemed rosy
for Maliki, until this week, when Bush convinced
him to sign a "declaration of principles" with the
United States. Among other things, the declaration
pledged to disarm all militias in Iraq, without
naming them, and fire all militiamen who had
joined the police and security forces under the
nose of the Maliki government.
Politically, it promised to uphold the
Iraqi constitution (which is already vetoed in
current form by the majority of Sunnis), and
prevent any seizure of power in Baghdad through
illegal terms (like a political or military coup).
Militarily, the agreement
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