Winning in Iraq

If you haven’t heard, we are making huge gains in Iraq.  Security is improving everywhere, al Qaeda is on the run, and foreigners are actually beginning to leave Iraq…

Foreign fighters leaving Iraq, military says (USA Today, March 21)

A  growing number of foreign fighters are leaving or attempting to flee Iraq as U.S. and Iraqi forces have weakened al-Qaeda and forced its members from former strongholds, U.S. military officials say.

The trend reflects a broad disenchantment among foreign fighters, particularly since al-Qaeda has lost sanctuaries in parts of Baghdad and Anbar, a Sunni province west of the capital, U.S. military intelligence officials say.

“They’re being told in their countries of origin by facilitators that, ‘Hey, we’re basically winning the war against the apostates,’ ” said Brig. Gen. Michael Flynn, intelligence director for Central Command, which oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East. “They go there and find out it’s not quite the case.” more…

I am a little biased, but the troops on the ground are the ones rebuilding Iraq.  Not generals, definitely not politicians.  Troops are acting as mayors, builders, judges, doctors, public works directors, and security.   Where are the actual doctors and civil engineers?  Where is the UN?

Sovereigns of All They’re Assigned, Captains Have Many Missions to Oversee (NY Times, March 21)

JISR DIALA, Iraq— During the war in Iraq, young Army and Marine captains have become American viceroys, officers with large sectors to run and near-autonomy to do it. In military parlance, they are the “ground-owners.” In practice, they are power brokers.

“They give us a chunk of land and say, ‘Fix it,’ ” said Capt. Rich Thompson, 36, who controls an area east of Baghdad.

The Iraqis have learned that these captains, many still in their 20s, can call down devastating American firepower one day and approve multimillion-dollar projects the next. Some have become celebrities in their sectors, men whose names are known even to children.

Many in the military believe that these captains are the linchpins in the American strategy for success in Iraq, but as the war continues into its sixth year the military has been losing them in large numbers — at a time when it says it needs thousands more.