Violence may hit again as U.S. forces pull out from cities- paper

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Violence will return to Iraq with the departure of U.S. troops from Iraqi cities, The Los Angeles Times said in a report, adding that insurgents are bitter about the lack of progress since laying down their weapons. “‘If we hear from the Americans they are not capable of supporting us. . . within six hours we are going to establish our groups to fight against the corrupt government’,” the newspaper quoted an insurgency leader as saying. “‘There will be a war in Baghdad’,” the leader added. “The commander and another insurgent leader interviewed for this story belong to the secret world of Sunni Muslim tribesmen and old military officers who laid down their arms and helped bring relative peace to Iraq in the last two years. They decided to try to fight the Shiite religious parties in control of the government through political channels instead — but they never renounced the insurgency,” the paper noted. “Now the dormant insurgent groups, with men, weapons and networks intact, are approaching their moment of truth. If their efforts to enter the mainstream fail, it appears almost inevitable that they will take up arms again, either after national elections early next year or sooner. “With U.S. forces preparing to withdraw from Iraqi cities next month, insurgent groups see no sign of progress on their demands for the Americans to guarantee their entry into the political system and protect them from the parties in power.” “As the insurgents watched and waited, they saw the government continue to jail their fighters, despite their decision to hold their fire. Likewise, they noticed the inability, or unwillingness, of U.S. troops to stop a crackdown against leaders of the Awakening movement, their Sunni brethren who left the insurgency for formal partnerships with the Americans,” it noted. “The disenchantment of the Sunnis also could have implications for Afghanistan, where the U.S. military hopes to reproduce the success of its alliance with the Awakening movement by reaching out to moderate Taliban elements. But the fate of the Awakening members and the inactive insurgent groups could cause Taliban fighters to think twice before embarking on a similar path.” “In the end, the distrust between the Shiites and Sunnis involved may be too strong to overcome. The Iraqi government views the armed groups as a Trojan horse for Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party to return to power and are adamant about blocking a creeping coup from inside Baghdad’s government. For their part, the insurgent leaders see a government that is a proxy for neighboring Shiite-led Iran.” “A U.S. military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, says military and U.S. Embassy personnel are frustrated by their inability to reconcile the government and armed groups. They worry that it’s only a matter of time before insurgents renew their uprising,” according to the newspaper. “‘When they finally realize America is an impotent force, or acting like one, are they going to give up and say it’s useless and return to armed conflict to topple the government?’ the official asked. “Are they going to take up arms against the coalition as well?'” “Contacts between armed groups and the Americans have revolved around insurgent commanders’ demands for protection from arrests and harassment by the Iraqi government, the restoration of military officers to their old jobs and help in entering politics. The Americans have not given any firm responses,” it added. SS (I) 1