By Jonathan Fairbank, Editor-in-Chief
At this time last year, the situation in Iraq was abysmal. American and coalition casualties – not to mention the tremendous tolls on Iraqi civilians – were mounting in unbearable numbers. Iraq seemed like a lost cause – perhaps it still is. Even the senior editor of this Report in his January 2007 piece, on the eve of “The Surge,” called for a complete withdrawal from Iraq.
Flash to a year later. Both American liberator and Iraqi civilian casualties are dramatically down. In fact, markets in Baghdad are open again, and according to media reports, normal life – as normal as it can get in war-torn Iraq – seems to have resurfaced.
We are unsure whether this is the respite before a larger storm. We hope that the surge has worked and that evil militants are being killed off in sufficient quantity. We also earnestly hope that the hitherto effete Iraqi military and police forces will demonstrate courage and moral fiber to defend their soil and their people.
We also wonder out loud how is it that all it takes is the addition of 21,000 American troops on the ground. We are optimistic this year – even if it is nervously so.
No comments:
Post a Comment