Christoph Bangert/Polaris, for The New York Times
Iraqi soldiers from the First Brigade, Sixth Division, prepared for a mission. The brigade is the first Iraqi Army unit to control its own battle space.
Posted on 08/13/2005 10:14:15 PM PDT by neverdem
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Aug. 13 - Soldiers called it the "Street of Death" and "Purple Heart Boulevard," a three-mile-long residential corridor in central Baghdad that had become a shooting gallery for insurgents. In 2004 alone, Haifa Street, once a coveted address for the middle class, was the bloody venue for more than 400 attacks on American and Iraqi security forces. Many residents on the most troubled blocks fled their homes, some of which were promptly commandeered as rebel sniper roosts.
An American-Iraqi military campaign begun last year to retake the street seemed to bear fruit as insurgents were captured, killed or driven from the area. On Feb. 6, the American command handed over a cut of north-central Baghdad, including Haifa Street, to the First Brigade, Sixth Division, of the Iraqi Army.
This transfer made the First Brigade the first - and only - Iraqi Army unit to control its own battle space, and put it on the leading edge of the Bush administration's plan to have Iraqi forces take responsibility for the country's security.
The good news for American officials, in a war where territorial gains have been elusive, is that the Iraqi troops have not lost ground on Haifa Street. Since the First Brigade took control, there have been only three insurgent attacks along the street, and those came in the first three weeks, commanders say.
Though the pacification of the area began last year under American auspices - and it is possible that the insurgents simply moved their operations elsewhere - soldiers and residents contend that the sustained peace is attributable in large part to the community's acceptance of a homegrown security force; in contrast, many residents regarded the American soldiers as interlopers and invaders.
"We feel the difference between the two forces," said Alaa Khadem, 41, the owner...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
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Look what the preverts wrote here.
What the NYT REALLY wanted to say...
"many residents regarded the American soldiers as interlopers and invaders."
... wasn't in the lede. But good post, nonetheless.
Thanks for the ping.
They still have that whole "macho" thing going, but you can tell there is growing respect for their American counterparts.
They were not shy about it. That pic was up on the the homepage. Still is.
http://www.nytimes.com/
I'm sure almost all of you will hate this story too! /sarc
It sure is! WOW
They know the Iraqi Constitution is coming on Monday, and they know a vote for ratification of the Constitution will happen and General Election will occur before the end of the year...
Iraq is on it's way and they know it
No, something else is up, but I don't know what.
Good Lord Ernest, why do you think I almost never post Frank Rich's OpEd crapola, other than to mock him. I rarely bother to read his tripe. He probably cited every poll question except the one that says almost 60% of the American people say we should stay the course in Iraq until we finish the job. This news story is nothing to sneeze at.
SECRETARY RICE: That's right.
MR. GIBSON: the people say we need to stay the --
SECRETARY RICE: We need to stay the course. And that says that Americans understand the stakes here.
I didn't bother to read Rich. Did you?
We need to level any place that gives us one Iota of trouble. We are too PC in this engagement. We need to level large regions of this country....
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