The Iraqi Government Has No Power?!

A Fatwa Against Violence by Iraqis? Key religious leaders meet to work for the early issuance of a joint Sunni-Shia fatwa to the Iraqi people, against violence. The obvious questions, will it actually be issued and if so, will it be enforceable? Will the people listen and obey?

... a three day meeting ... that included six of the most senior Iraqi Sunni and Shia religious leaders. At the meeting, held at a Marriott hotel in a Cairo suburb, they formally agreed to "end terrorist violence, and to disband militia activity in order to build a civilized country and work within the framework of law." [snip]

This gathering was a truly historic event, given the authority of the participants -- including Sheikh Ahmed al Kubaisi, acknowledged by all Iraqis as the senior Sunni religious authority (the weekly audience for his Friday sermons, broadcast from Dubai, number 20 million), and Ayatollah Sayyid Ammar Abu Ragheef, chief of staff for Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, the acknowledged leader of the Shia community in Iraq and beyond. One has only to consider the power of these specific religious leaders, and the instruments at their disposal for getting results, to grasp the gathering's enormous potential importance. (Wall Street Journal, hat tip Family Security Matters)

This sounds great, but is it possible, or is it too late? At least one person says, "Iraq Does Not Exist Anymore." That it has been forever changed, that the government HAS NO POWER to make change.

Nir Rosen: Iraq has been changed irrevocably, I think. I don't think Iraq even - you can say it exists anymore. There has been a very effective, systematic ethnic cleansing of Sunnis from Baghdad, of Shias - from areas that are now mostly Shia. But the Sunnis especially have been a target, as have mixed families like the one we just saw. With a name like Omar, he's distinctly Sunni - it's a very Sunni name. You can be executed for having the name Omar alone. And Baghdad is now firmly in the hands of sectarian Shiite militias, and they're never going to let it go.

Amy Goodman: What do you think of Senator Levin calling for the Maliki and the whole government to disband?

Nir Rosen: Well, it's stupid for several reasons. First of all, the Iraqi government doesn't matter. It has no power. And it doesn't matter who you put in there. He's not going to have any power. Baghdad doesn't really matter, except for Baghdad. Baghdad used to be the most important city in Iraq, and whoever controlled Baghdad controlled Iraq. These days, you have a collection of city states: Mosul, Basra, Baghdad, Kirkuk, Irbil, Sulaymaniyah. Each one is virtually independent, and they have their own warlords and their own militias. And what happens in Baghdad makes no difference. So that's the first point.

Second of all, who can he put in instead? What does he think he's going to put in? Allawi or some secular candidate? There was a democratic election, and the majority of Iraqis selected the sectarian Shiite group Dawa, Supreme Council of Islamic Revolution, the Sadr Movement. These are movements that are popular among the majority of Shias, who are the majority of Iraq. So it doesn't matter who you put in there. And people in the Green Zone have never had any power. (More at Tribe)

Stop Islamic Conquest points out "The Eight-Hundred-Pound Gorilla" no one is confronting:

Readers of my blog know that a major source of the problems in Iraq is Saudi Arabia: Saudi volunteers, Saudi know-how and Saudi funding. Since no one will deal with this source of terrorism at the source, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the war in Iraq drags on.

Charles Krauthammer says, "Continue surge's success, but Maliki's time is over." (hat tip the Bill-T Blog)

A number of fair-minded observers, both critics and supporters of the war, agree that the surge has yielded considerable military progress, while at the national political level the Maliki government remains a disaster.

FaultlineUSA, "The War Heats Inside the Democratic Party"

According to Michael van der Galien of The Moderate Voice

There is something strange going on in the progressive blogosphere these days: instead of uniting against Republicans, progressive bloggers like Matt Stoller have decided to declare war on every Democrat who they consider not to be progressive (read anti-war) enough. . . .

Republicans rejoice! Perhaps the Democrats will implode over the war before the 2008 elections.

On the war on terror overall, see: War on Terror - Looking Back Before its Too Late

World events, when taken separately, are disturbing enough. From India to the Mediterranean, viewing the puzzle as a whole, could lead to troubling conclusions. The question is if the constructed picture will upset the sensibilities of many more than those who agree. (Stormwarning's Counterterrorism Blog)

Also see:

The News About the News From Iraq, by Bookworm Room via Webloggin:

It’s pathetic when the semi-enemy media is more favorable to you, and understanding of your objectives, than your own media is.

"Be polite. Be professional. Be prepared to kill.", DeMediacratic Nation

Political Grind is having an open discussion, go check it out.
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Comments

[Debbie]

INCOGNITO: I pray also for the best. An Iraq in shambles will be terrible for the Middle East. It's like "we broke it, we have to fix it" now.

ROSEMARY: Thanks for the link to your article, very good information. I appreciate it.

MICHAEL: I didn't see that, but you may be right. Actually the clerics are running things. Even the elected leaders, and the "wanna be" leaders, consult with the clerics, specifically Sistani.

[Incognito]

I think it's too little too late.. why they heck didn't they do this before it got so out of hand.. in fact, why haven't the world's moderate Muslims done the same thing..

One can only hope, though. I know I keep praying about it.

[Rosemary]

In an article I read and posted today, Operation Lightning Hammer disrupts AQ in Diyala (http://rosemarysthoughts.blogspot.com/2007/08/operation-lightning-hammer-disrupts-aq.html), I would like to share a few facts with you.

1. Diyala: 80 tribal leaders agreed to unite and become one tribe in order to fight AQ. They met Aug. 19, 2007. This is after not speaking at all for over a year.

2. Shadia: An AQ command post was found due to a tip by people who were glad to see us. We gathered much intel, including who is working with them, names, numbers, addresses, routes, orders, etc.

3. Qaryat Sunayjiyat: Located an AQ medical clinic, which is now in our hands.

4. Mukeisha: CF now has a permanent presence in the heart of the River Valley and Diyala.

What does all this mean to our success? We have blocked their transportation between Iran and their weapons orders. Any Iranians will no doubt be identified by the locals, because they are getting tired of this.

Answer me this, did we win the Revolutionary War by waiting to hear from the 1st Continental Congress? HELL NO! LOL. We took it upon ourselves to fight with our neighbor against our enemy which, at that time, was the British. ;)

In other words, we will not win this war, either, from the central government. We WILL win this war by having the locals on our side. The centralized government will come later. Besides, they are like us than anyone would ever have imagined.

They want to be able to vote for the individual person, not some stupid slate where you have to take your chances. They don't want a big central government. MY GOD! They're Conservatives! LOLOLOLOLOLOL.

[michael]

"...they formally agreed to 'end terrorist violence, and to disband militia activity in order to build a civilized country and work within the framework of law.'"
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Is it just me, or is this an admission by them that the muslim clerics are controlling the terrorism in Iraq?