[lit-ideas] A word from Iraq
- From: "Lawrence Helm" <lawrencehelm@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 5 Feb 2006 09:37:55 -0800
My friend from the Army Corps of Engineers in Iraq (quoted by permission)
writes, "I'm outside Nasiriyah. It is mostly Shiite, I'm not sure what
percentage. It is certainly not in the Sunni part of the country; we are 200
miles south-east of Baghdad.
"I agree with the point that the people coming to the table over Iranian
influence are mostly Sunni. The Shiia are not the ones causing trouble for
the new government. In other words, the Shiia cannot "come to the table" in
the sense that it is already their table. They always supported the new
government, and always opposed the Saddam regime.
"There are many different reasons folks come up with to participate in
violence here. There are Saddam supporters, and also former Republican Guard
types that aren't necessarily fighting on behalf of Saddam, but because they
lost their positions of privilege. There are various criminal elements,
organized crime rings, black marketeers and smugglers. There are religious
militias (both Sunni and Shiia), and private armies belonging to strongmen
and wealthy families. There are tribal fighters, and many of these belong to
one of the above groups. There are also the foreign fighters, as well as
foreign advisors to any of the above groups. There are also Iranian
intelligence agents. Some of these groups fight each other, some fight the
new government, some fight the coalition. The people of Maysan governate
fight anyone that is not from Maysan. Shiia are divided into two factions
for dogmatic reasons that were explained to me at one time but I forget.
Also, there is a split among Shiia between the older generations and the
newer generations. The young kids are more fundamental in their beliefs, the
older folks are more secular.
"Some of the border areas are influenced by Iran politically, others
religiously via the Iranian Shiite clerics only. Some are influenced by
both. Influence could be anything from common viewpoints, to collaborative
support. Mostly the "influence" from Iran is cultural/religious, and does
not include support for Iranian control of the region in question. An
example would be the "morality police" that are popping up in the south of
Iraq in the form of independent gangs; they are not supportive of Iranian
rule, but they have a similar pattern of violence against people who fail to
show proper strict Muslim behavior.
"The majority of non-Kurdish Iraqis are Arab, Iran is mostly Persian. They
speak a different language, and historically don't get along.
"I'll ask around and see how the local folks feel about Iran.
"Most of the local folks are actually rather neutral to US influence. Many
have relatives in western countries, and most have a live-and-let-live
attitude towards the world. The poor condition of the country is clearly
understood to be due to 30 years of Saddam, and most people are thankful of
coalition help in rebuilding. Most people wish there would be more money
coming from the US and the coalition nations, and wish the rebuilding would
go faster. The general feeling is that we should be more involved, not less.
Not that we should stay forever, but that up until now there should have
been a closer involvement and heavier commitment. Most people know that we
are reducing our footprint in the country, and they are struggling to get
ready in time. US/Coalition involvement is seen as helpful and necessary,
and will be missed when it is
over."
Lawrence
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