Pro-Iran militias take upper hand after U.S.-backed forces crumble in Anbar

washingtonpost.com ^ | Loveday Morris

[BenLurkin]

Iraqi forces have seized from Islamic State militants a string of hamlets and villages in the dust-choked desert southeast of Ramadi...

But the yellow-and-green flags that line the sides of the newly secured roads and flutter from rooftops leave no doubt as to who is leading the fighting here: Kitaeb Hezbollah, a Shiite militia designated a terrorist organization by the United States.

Iraq’s two main allies — Iran and the United States — have vied for influence over Iraq’s battle to retake ground from Islamic State militants in the past year. While Iranian-linked Shiite militias have spearheaded the fight elsewhere, the U.S.-backed Iraqi army and counterterrorism units had been on the front lines in Anbar province, supported by an eight-month American-led air campaign.

But with the fall of Ramadi, the province’s capital, this month, paramilitary forces close to Iran are now taking the upper hand. They include groups such as Kitaeb Hezbollah, responsible for thousands of attacks on U.S. soldiers who fought in Iraq after the 2003 invasion.

[Pining_4_TX]

This was a disaster from the beginning. Saddam kept the two factions from killing each other. Yes, he oppressed the Shia, but when Maliki came into power he oppressed the Sunnis.

No more American lives lost to intervene in a Muslim vs Muslim war. Let them kill each other. If we could get the non-Muslims out of there, it would be the best thing we could do.

The threat to the US is not the fight going on there, it is the thousands of Muslims streaming into our country. Islam is incompatible with civilization and should be banned. Deport Muslims, bring US troops home and put them on our borders. Institute a “pet the pig” requirement before boarding a plane.

I understand that conservatives are loath to think of all our good people who died for nothing in that hell-hole, but sacrificing more Americans won’t bring the others back.

The election in Iraq solved nothing. It was the classic case of 2 wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.

I never understood why conservatives were in favor of invading Iraq in the first place. Once Saddam was removed, chaos was inevitable. The only winner has been Iran.

[demshateGod]

It really stinks that the people of the Stupid Party nominated the Etch-a-Sketch.

[Mount Athos]

Conservatives aren’t driving our foreign policy.

I think massive political contributions from Qatar and Saudi Arabia, etc.. are.

You know the Clinton Foundation? That’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to undue foreign influence for big money.

You’re right that we aren’t acting in our interests, but that’s because we are acting in theirs for money.

[Ethan Clive Osgoode]

The threat to the US is not the fight going on there,

A world-wide islamic terrorist state based in Iraq/Syria is definitely a threat to the USA.

The US should not run away from the mistakes made by Bush and Obama. Today at least 30,000 of the most radical lunatics from all over the world have come to join ISIS. The US has a chance to wipe some of the world's most dedicated and willing islamic terrorist nutcases.

[familyop]

"I never understood why conservatives were in favor of invading Iraq in the first place."

Iraq invaded Kuwait, threatening oil market stability. They're not really conservatives, but they are interested in keeping fuel prices low for their international trade investments.

"The only winner has been Iran."

That's true. And it's okay with them, that Iran is close to Russia and building nukes.

[nathanbedford]

For the entire length of the war in Iraq under George Bush, that fruitless endeavor was justified as a killing field of jihadist drawn into that theater. How did that work out?

The strategy of shoveling flies is no more effective than the strategy of taking real estate when waging an asymmetrical war involving terrorism. You are right, a worldwide Islamic terrorist state is a threat to the USA but the idea that its "center" is Iraq/Syria leads to a confused strategy, a strategy which led us to invade Iraq in the first place. If we were to tame Iraq tomorrow, the jihadist threat would still be extant from China to well along the Mediterranean coast, Iraq is only a place. When we occupied Iraq did we come any closer to preventing 19 box cutter welding fanatics from attacking America the next time? Of course not. This war is not a war for geography, not a checker game in two dimensions in which spaces are taken and held, it is a three or four dimensional war which must be seen in those terms.

If in one of the highest honors in hell where Osama bin Laden is no doubt roasting for eternity he might if he is capable look upon our misadventure in Iraq as the fruit of his attack on 9/11 and he could not be better satisfied with the outcome. Similarly, for the United States to get mixed up in Iraq now by any means other than determined aerial bombing would be almost as damaging to our security.

I have posted from the very beginning of the Obama war in Iraq that the enemy is not really Isis, the real enemy was and remains Iran. Iran has the infrastructure and will soon have the bomb. At that point the geographical balance of power in the region will be stood on its head and America will be even more obviously on the run. This is more than a checker board move, the bomb will change everything.

We must start to think in these terms and get rid of the idea that we can win in Vietnam this time.

[nathanbedford]

" highest honors in hell" was actually dictated as "hottest corners in hell."

[BeadCounter]

Iran is winning? Really? In Syria and a lot of places in Iraq, the Shia population has greatly suffered. Also, if Iran is supplying men for Assad in Syria just like Hezbollah and some others are, it sounds like a real meat grinder.

Those barrel bombs in the news, though usually spoken of in regards to Syria have probably been dropped in Iraq too.

[BeadCounter]

Good post. Largely agree.

Speaking of China, they don’t fool around, people may have missed that China just brought to justice a bunch of Uighur gangs. The causes and problems are not all that clear, sure, some of this is Extremism, they are Muslims.

http://www.ibtimes.com/china-says-over-180-gangs-smashed-anti-terror-crackdown-xinjiang-1936755

I read something that when the US invaded Iraq, Syria let go a whole lot of radical jihadists in their jails and sent them to Iraq. Syria and Iran may well have fomented trouble for the US. I can imagine something like this.

Hindsights 20/20 but we really don’t have a clearer idea now either.

[LadyDoc]

By withdrawing American troops too soon, this was predicted by many military experts.

if I were into conspiracy theories, I would suspect the NWO types wanted to reignite the Sunni Shiite wars, destroy the oil there, bring on world wide economic collapse etc to facilitate a one world government.

the best case scenario is a reborn Persian empire. Yes, the mullahs are nuts, but they also are corrupt and love money, and know attacking Israel would mean their cities would glow in the dark. So the real danger is ISIL.

[arthurus]

What is happening in Iraq and Syria seems to be a side issue for Hussein. The main game would be Iran vs Israel and arming Iran to strike Israel with a nuclear weapon. Israel would then retaliate with its underground and undersea nukes leaving Israel highly reduced if viable at all and Iran will simply not be. Both of the Sunni Moslem's enemies in the Middle East will have effectively ceased to be and the surrounding arabs are expected to overrun what is left of Israel after Tel Aviv and maybe Haifa are gone. The enemy that remains is on the other side of the Atlantic and dismemberment of that enemy is proceeding apace.

[bert]

The winner has not yet been determined and likely will not be for perhaps 10 years.

In the end, the radical wackos will be cast aside.

[arthurus]

A conqueror who withdraws from any place in the ME at whatever stage of pacification or democratization is turning the formerly conquered area back to the primitives and either to strong men or to headchoppers.

[rbg81]

That is a pretty bad scenario, but if it ever happens the MSM will deny that Obama is in any way to blame.

It really does not surprise me that the Iraqi army is useless. It was the equivalent of a big jobs program and the soldiers were mostly in it for the $$, not to fight. Same thing with the Afghani army. After we pull out, they will quickly crumble.

[antidisestablishment]

1979

[BenLurkin]

bttt

[arthurus]

If it really happens the MSM will be irelevant.Either the Communists/Moslems will have won it all or there will be a coup d’etat and/or civil war in America.

[Pining_4_TX]

I’m sorry to say, you’re right. This has nothing to do with American interests, and our good people are being used as mercenaries for foreigners. Only they aren’t the ones getting paid.

[Pining_4_TX]

Every Muslim is a potential terrorist. Are we going to wipe them out? Hardly. The only way these crazy a-holes can hurt us is if we let them into our country, which we are doing now. Our corrupt politicians are bringing the enemy here by the thousands. Nothing we do overseas will matter. We are welcoming our own destruction into our nation. That is the threat to the US.