18 September 2007
editorial
Abuja — Last week, the leading American General presiding over the continuing occupation of Iraq, General David Petraeus, delivered his keenly awaited report to the United States Congress, on the progress of the so-called surge of troops into Iraq.
Close observers of America's Iraq debacle, say that the General did not produce any major surprises in his appearances before the two chambers of the American Congress, the House of Representatives and the Senate.
There were several flipcharts during the appearance, all aimed to convince a sceptical Congress, that the "surge" of thousands of troops in recent months, was beginning to work in America's favour, as well as the quarrelsome government that has been in place over the last fifteen months. Even circles sympathetic to the American occupation of Iraq, and those who believe that there was no alternative to the continued presence of American troops there, say that General Petraeus exaggerated the gains of the surge.
The truth of the situation in Iraq remains a very bitter pill to swallow for the Bush administration; this is because over three thousand American soldiers have lost their lives in a senseless invasion and occupation, which the former head of the American Federal Reserve Bank, Allan Greenspan, came out this week to underline as having been undertaken, just for the sake of Iraq's oil; a reason that most people around the world have long suspected anyway.
Iraq under American occupation has become a land of sectarian killings, which the Americans have encouraged with the compartmentalization of the country into sectarian and tribal enclaves, with gangs from different enclaves being armed to kill themselves. It is this tragic scenario that has led millions to flee their country while over four million Iraqis are internally displaced.
This background of killings has deepened disillusionment amongst Iraqis; the latest BBC/ABC News poll reported that 47% of Iraqis now want the Americans to leave their country at once, against 35% in February. Similarly, more than two-thirds say that the surge has worsened conditions in the country and significantly, 85% lack confidence in the Americans and British, while 57% consider attacks on the occupying forces as acceptable.
While Iraqis have rejected the continuing occupation of their country, significant sections of the American people have also rejected all the pretexts that the Bush administration continues to issue to justify the occupation and systematic destruction of Iraq. This week has seen the launch of new anti-war demonstrations in Washington, which organizers expect to last a week.
Labouring under the heavy burden of the cost of the occupation, its rejection by the Iraqis, unpopularity at home and its condemnation around the world, President Bush has announced a token withdrawal of some troops from Iraq. It is very clear that Bush is preparing the grounds for the occupation to be inherited by a succeeding American administration, whether Republican or Democrat.
It is obvious that the occupation of Iraq has become a quagmire for its occupiers. But it is in the nature of all imperial misadventures, that sooner rather later, the occupation power has to find a face-saving scheme to cut its losses. The time to cut losses has come for the United States because there is no way that the occupation of Iraq can continue. It has been too costly in terms of the loss of Iraqi and American lives as well as the destruction of the fabric of Iraqi national life. America must pull its troops out of Iraq without further delay.
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