Word: iraqi
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...having a direct hand in the violence - "The dark powers," in the words of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's political adviser Sadiq al-Rukabi. "They don't want a strong government in Iraq. And they try in one way or another to affect the progress of the Iraqi people...
...dozen legislators were on hand. But the session, which started at 10 a.m. and lasted past lunch and into the afternoon, was so contentious the deputy speaker asked parliament security to drag journalists out even as MPs of the Sadrist bloc demanded they remain as witnesses for the Iraqi people. (How the recent bombings in Iraq have made America an election issue...
...more recent date has some members of parliament and, especially, bureaucrats in the Oil Ministry concerned. That would be July 31, when parliament failed to pass a British-Iraqi security agreement. The British navy, which helped secure Iraq's gulf waters, then left the area. Now the oil-export terminals near Basra may be vulnerable - and the terminals facilitate over 70% of state revenue. The U.S. Navy has said it will pick up the slack, but eventually the Iraq navy must take responsibility. And it is still in training...
That kind of military unreadiness makes Iraqis nervous, as much as they want the U.S. out. Opinions on the street are heated and mixed. Some who want the U.S. to leave soon say a delay would postpone the probable power vacuum and accompanying bloodbath, which they hope will be short-lived. But that is the very reason others say it's not time for the U.S. to leave, because Iraqi security forces aren't ready and Iraqi politicians - pampered as they are patriotic - don't yet recognize that the country isn't prepared to go it alone. (See pictures...
...news seems to reinforce the sense of Iraqi dependence on the U.S. Every day U.S. dollars stand up Iraqi institutions. U.S. assistance has facilitated a major power-generator deal with GE. Provincial reconstruction teams are working locally to enhance agriculture. U.S. military press releases announce the graduation of Iraqi police- and army-academy classes...