Contributor
Iraqi politicians, not U.S. military might, will end Iraq’s festering instability, explain Lawrence Korb and Ian Moss.
The “surge” strategy now under review on Capitol Hill failed to meet its most important goals recently in Basra, writes Ian Moss.
One key, yet overlooked, factor behind recent declines in Iraq's violence is U.S. support for new Sunni militias made up of former insurgents and al-Qaeda sympathizers. Direct financial support provided by the U.S. military to these groups - known collectively as the sahwa movement - have helped make the movement the main authority in certain Baghdad neighborhoods and other parts of Iraq.
Report shows that sahwa groups, a central “success” of the surge, have exacerbated existing political divisions and fomented new political cleavages.