The government of Iraq promised to give them civilian jobs, but very few were hired. Those that were hired received menial work. Many joined the Iraqi Army or the Iraqi Police forces. Some were actually given "honorary" ranking positions, but now the Iraqi government is working to strip them of their Army/Police ranks and reduce them to the rank-and-file.
Earlier this year, many were issued their final meager pay by the government of Iraq and essentially told to hit the road.
In essence, they were sold out by the same government(s) that they fought for. With the Iraqi economy still in shambles, and rampant unemployment, it's no wonder that they are reverting to their old ways.
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As an added note, the al Iraqiya bloc, which won by a slim majority last March, has threatened to quit the government if Maliki retains his seat as the PM. This falls right in line with the recent conditions set by the Iranian government for backing Maliki. Iran wants al-Maliki to refrain from renewing the security agreement with the United States after its expiration in 2011 and insists that he tie the Iraqi economy to Iran’s. Al-Maliki must also protect two Shiite militant groups — Asaib Ahl al-Haq and Jamaat Hezbollah — that split from Jaish al-Mahdi, the militant arm of Muqtada al-Sadr’s group. If al-Maliki cannot protect the groups, he should at least leave them alone and not attempt to disband them, the source said.
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What does this mean for the average Iraqi on the streets in Anbar Province? Many have been purchasing weapons for self defense. Others are seriously considering safe haven in Syria or Jordan. I spoke with one Iraqi today who told me that the reason that the security situation is (relatively speaking) calm due to the continued presence of the US forces. He believes that once US troops depart, civil war will begin anew, with an outcome not unlike that which occured in the former Yugoslavia.
That damn Maliki is nothing but trouble. He's a puppet for Iran and always has been. He's only "played nice" with us to get funding.
Allawi won that election and Maliki refuses to cede power, thus creating the deadlock (and subsequent deterioration of the security situation) we see today.
If we had a decent administration back home, we'd probably be able to do somthing about this, but alas, we have the Muslim who favors Iran over our own country.