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BAGHDAD -- Iraqi lawmakers overcame weeks of deadlock Wednesday to pass three key measures: a $48-billion national budget, an amnesty bill and legislation paving the way for provincial elections by Oct. 1. Approval of the bills could signal a greater willingness by Iraq's main ethnic and religious factions to overcome differences that have stymied political progress. Lawmakers said the measures would generate economic development and could speed the return of Sunni Arab ministers who walked out of the Shiite Muslim-led government. Analysts cautioned, however, that Iraqi leaders remained deeply divided on key issues, including the distribution of Iraq's massive oil...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU — Iraqi Police from the Rashid District and Soldiers of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, hosted an IP recruitment drive March 10-13 at Patrol Base Hawks, Iraq. The recruitment drive is the first chance for citizens of the region to establish their own long-term security. Soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, jumpstarted efforts to recruit 300 Arab Jabour men for IP Academy training. The event ushered in an era of transition for some Sons of Iraq, who with the assistance from IPs of the Rashid District, will one day patrol their...

WASHINGTON, March 11, 2008 – The latest quarterly report on the situation in Iraq notes continued security improvements and limited but important political, economic and diplomatic progress that must expand to preserve fragile security gains. The Defense Department released its “Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq” report today, the latest in quarterly reports to Congress, covering the period from December to February. The report notes that violence is down throughout much of Iraq. Deaths from ethno-sectarian violence are down 90 percent, and civilian and coalition deaths by more than 70 percent since the June report. The bulls-eye for attacks has...

Petraeus Warns Iraq Progress is Tenuous, Reversible.by Jed Babbin Posted 03/06/2008 ET Updated 03/07/2008 ET Citing the reduction in violence in most areas of Iraq in the past six to eight months, a confident but cautious Gen. David Petraeus told me Thursday that the progress in Iraq is both tenuous and reversible. Gen. Petraeus spoke to me earlier today in an exclusive interview that will be broadcast in part today and in part Monday on the Michael Reagan radio show. Asked about al-Queda’s presence in Iraq, and reports that the terrorist group was trying to regain its foothold in Iraq,...

Citing the reduction in violence in most areas of Iraq in the past six to eight months, a confident but cautious Gen. David Petraeus told me Thursday that the progress in Iraq is both tenuous and reversible. Gen. Petraeus spoke to me earlier today in an exclusive interview that will be broadcast in part today and in part Monday on the Michael Reagan radio show. Asked about al-Queda’s presence in Iraq, and reports that the terrorist group was trying to regain its foothold in Iraq, Petraeus said that al-Queda has not yet been defeated or removed from Iraq, and that...

Iraq: A bright young infantry officer just back from Baghdad is dazzling audiences with the story of how our forces turned things around in Iraq. And he warns that the place where the war can be lost now is at the ballot box in America.U.S. Army Capt. Pete Hegseth graduated from Princeton less than five years ago, but since then he has served as a volunteer with the 101st Airborne in its 2005-06 Iraq deployment. This included stints as a platoon leader in Baghdad during the December 2005 elections and as a civil-military operations officer in Samarra for seven months....

The perception that the U.S. troop surge in Iraq has succeeded is changing some public views of the war, potentially blunting Democrats' political edge on the issue.

BAGHDAD, March 4, 2008 – With the security situation here improving every day, Iraqi and coalition forces increasingly are helping displaced families move back into their old neighborhoods. A sheik addresses displaced Iraqi families returning to their homes, appealing for adherence to the local reconciliation agreement, during a ceremony welcoming families back to Baghdad’s Aamel neighborhood, Feb. 9, 2008. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division’s Company A, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, in cooperation with Iraqi security forces, the local reconciliation committee, and local and civic...

The next president may be stuck with more problems in Iraq than Bush ever faced. The next president, it now seems likely, will inherit a situation in Iraq that's as dreadful as any time since late 2006, before the troop surge and Gen. David Petraeus' new set of strategies. Three stories in today's papers forebode grimness. First, as is widely reported, Iraq's three-man presidential council vetoed a law that called for provincial elections in October. Mike McConnell, President Bush's director of national intelligence, called the veto "somewhat of a setback"—an understatement of staggering proportion. When the parliament passed that law...

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2008 – President Bush thanked the former commander of Multinational Corps Iraq today on behalf of all U.S. troops who have served in Iraq for creating a turnaround that Bush promised to continue to support. Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno left Iraq recently after a 15-month stint in charge of coalition ground forces, serving under Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of Multinational Force Iraq. “I appreciate the fact that you really snatched defeat out of the jaws of those who are trying to defeat us in Iraq,” Bush told Odierno following their meeting today...

BAGHDAD, March 3, 2008 – There is a new, more upbeat mood among American troops in Iraq, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, fresh from meeting troops of Multinational Division North in Hawijah, Iraq, and Multinational Division Baghdad in the Rashid district, said the mood of the troops has improved since his first visit as chairman in October. “One of my vivid memories from October was how tired the troops were and what a fight they were in at the time,” the chairman said during an interview with reporters traveling with him....

BAGHDAD, March 3, 2008 – Security progress in Iraq is undeniable, but it is fragile and must be sustained, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen told reporters traveling with him to Iraq that the trip was a chance for him to see progress for himself, to talk with Iraqis of all stripes, and to interact with U.S. servicemembers bearing the heaviest burden. “There is so much going in the right direction that is tied to better security,” Mullen said. “The level of violence being down has allowed the Iraqis to focus on...

Politics has broken out in Baghdad. Long derided as dysfunctional, Iraq's parliament in recent weeks has passed a package of laws on the budget, elections and sectarian reconciliation that have given cautious hope to U.S. officials and private analysts that the gains from President Bush's military surge are finally being matched by a political surge as well. Daniel Serwer, a specialist on post-conflict societies, recently led a delegation from the Washington-based U.S. Institute of Peace to Baghdad to assess the political scene and interview the major Iraqi players inside the Green Zone. "The popular image is that things are completely...

Politics has broken out in Baghdad. Long derided as dysfunctional, Iraq's parliament in recent weeks has passed a package of laws on the budget, elections and sectarian reconciliation that have given cautious hope to U.S. officials and private analysts that the gains from President Bush's military surge are finally being matched by a political surge as well. Daniel Serwer, a specialist on post-conflict societies, recently led a delegation from the Washington-based U.S. Institute of Peace to Baghdad to assess the political scene and interview the major Iraqi players inside the Green Zone. "The popular image is that things are completely...

Now, in the midst of the surge, the Bush administration has done an about-face. Having lost the civil war, many Sunnis were suddenly desperate to switch sides — and Gen. David Petraeus was eager to oblige. The U.S. has not only added 30,000 more troops in Iraq — it has essentially bribed the opposition, arming the very Sunni militants who only months ago were waging deadly assaults on American forces. To engineer a fragile peace, the U.S. military has created and backed dozens of new Sunni militias, which now operate beyond the control of Iraq's central government.

FOB HAMMER — Hussein Tahan, governor of Baghdad province, cut a ribbon to open the new Rustimiyah Bridge across the Diyala River, Feb. 22. The new bridge runs adjacent to a larger bridge that was damaged by an extremist’s truck bomb, May 11. The larger bridge reopened May 16, but remains in need of rehabilitation. “Today is a great day,” said Tahan during a speech at the opening ceremony. “It is a sign that security has improved.” The governor went on to highlight future governmental projects. “This year is the year of services,” Tahan said. “In the last few days,...

A shop owner awaits his customers at his fruit stand on 60th Street in the east side of Baghdad's Rashid district, Feb. 19. More than 50 shops have opened on 60th Street since the beginning of December. Photo by Spc. Ben Washburn, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. — During the past few months, Iraqis and Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers have been working hard to make sure the economic resurgence thrives throughout Baghdad. The Soldiers of 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, attached to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Inf. Div., have been working with the...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER — A new government center opened in the city of Salman Pak, Feb. 20, returning the local government to its seat in the heart of the Mada’in Qada. Sunni and Shia leaders of the qada, along with Soldiers and leaders of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team (BCT), attended the opening ceremony. Lt. Col. Ryan Kuhn, from Clarks, Neb., deputy commanding officer of the 3rd BCT, said Salman Pak is on the verge of a revival after years of domination by Sunni extremists. “The city of Salman Pak has historic meaning,” Kuhn said. “It is the second...

Despite the hopes of some Democratic opponents of the War on Terror – wishing that the fighting would escalate in Iraq and give an excuse to retreat – radical Islamofascist Muqtada al-Sadr has extended his truce in Iraq for another six months. And my how things have changed in Iraq, judging by this AP quote: Sheik al-Sadr has said he needs time to reorganize his militia and the announcement was widely seen as a bid to bolster his image as a major player in Iraq as Shi'ite leaders jockey for power ahead of an anticipated U.S. force reduction. I find...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22, 2008 – Security contributions provided by surge-fortified U.S. forces and ongoing efforts by Iraqi soldiers, police and concerned local citizens’ groups have combined to produce stability, a senior U.S. officer posted in Iraq said today. “The current security situation is stable, and I am optimistic about the future,” said Army Col. Tom James, commander of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, a component of the Fort Stewart, Ga.-based 3rd Infantry Division. The Iraq veteran and his unit deployed to Iraq in December. A component of Multinational Division Center, James’ 3,000-member brigade is based at Forward Operating Base Kalsu,...