Experts: Iraq verges on civil war

[Secret Squirrel]

An unchastened insurgency sowed devastation across Iraq Wednesday as experts here said the country is either on the verge of civil war or already in the middle of it.

In the course of the day: Four car bombs detonated in Baghdad; a man wearing explosives at an army recruitment center in Hawija, north of Baghdad, blew himself and many others up; a car bomb exploded in a marketplace in Tikrit, north of Baghdad; and the country's largest fertilizer plant was heavily damaged by a bomb in the usually quiet southern city of Basra. Meanwhile, U.S. Marines were winding up a remarkable pitched battle against surprisingly well-equipped and determined insurgents on Iraq's western border. Some 76 Iraqis were reported killed and more than 120 wounded in the one day of violence.

With security experts reporting that no major road in the country was safe to travel, some Iraq specialists speculated that the Sunni insurgency was effectively encircling the capital and trying to cut it off from the north, south and west, where there are entrenched Sunni communities. East of Baghdad is a mostly unpopulated desert bordering on Iran.

"It's just political rhetoric to say we are not in a civil war. We've been in a civil war for a long time," said Pat Lang, the former top Middle East intelligence official at the Pentagon...

link (http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/ny-woiraq0512,0,4630319.story?coll=ny-top-headlines)

[Malc]

Civil war is generally what happens when a regime is overthrown to many people want power and for the wrong reasons, its only coalition forces which are stopping the country decending into a full blown civil war.

[Lifeinasmallbox]

maybe itll be a good start for em...i mean from what i understand its 50/50 on love new iraq idea vs. keep the old iraq but only like 10% are willing to fight for old and like 40 are willing to fight for new...know what im sayin

[budgie]

maybe itll be a good start for em...i mean from what i understand its 50/50 on love new iraq idea vs. keep the old iraq but only like 10% are willing to fight for old and like 40 are willing to fight for new...know what im sayin

'Old against new' is not so much teh source of conflict as 'who gets the bigger slice of the pie': If the fight goes on after the occupiers leave it will be sectarian in nature between Shia, Sunni and Kurd and various factions therein. Of course the ostriches in the whitehouse will continue to talk ot of their asses while their heads are buried in teh sand...

[RGRBOX]

Civil war is generally what happens when a regime is overthrown to many people want power and for the wrong reasons, its only coalition forces which are stopping the country decending into a full blown civil war.

Typical.. you give the people what they wanted and wouldn't do for themselves.. then they thow rocks at you when you come to there aide.

[KB]

interesting post. Thanks for sharing.

[mudbunny]

..................this news brought to you by the No**** Post Gazette.

[panzerjager]

Frankly, I was more than a little perplexed on why the Shiites weren't ravaging the Sunnis after 33 years of murder, rape and oppression. Is it because Shiites are wimps (FYI: Not a flame, I really don't understand the dynamic).

If the Shiites, whom we have armed and trained, do go to full scale blows with the Sunnis, wouldn't a Sunni bloodbath occur? They are heavily outnumbered.

[Rakki]

Coz the Coalition is sitting tight on everyone. The Shiites did have their chance - remember the uprising with the Shiite militia a while ago... I forget the cleric's name..... that evetually got sorted out without the need to do a Fallujah.

[RGRBOX]

Coz the Coalition is sitting tight on everyone. The Shiites did have their chance - remember the uprising with the Shiite militia a while ago... I forget the cleric's name..... that evetually got sorted out without the need to do a Fallujah.

The presure of the Coalition on all sides is what's keeping what there is in check.. but things are starting to come to a boil.. hope politics can hold.. I know the troops can..

[Umm-Qasr]

Frankly, I was more than a little perplexed on why the Shiites weren't ravaging the Sunnis after 33 years of murder, rape and oppression. Is it because Shiites are wimps (FYI: Not a flame, I really don't understand the dynamic).

If the Shiites, whom we have armed and trained, do go to full scale blows with the Sunnis, wouldn't a Sunni bloodbath occur? They are heavily outnumbered.You know why? Because the Shia leader Ayatollah Sistani ordered them not to do so. And ofcourse the ba'athis saw that and the result is well known ... :|

[ElHombre]

Frankly, I was more than a little perplexed on why the Shiites weren't ravaging the Sunnis after 33 years of murder, rape and oppression. Is it because Shiites are wimps (FYI: Not a flame, I really don't understand the dynamic).

If the Shiites, whom we have armed and trained, do go to full scale blows with the Sunnis, wouldn't a Sunni bloodbath occur? They are heavily outnumbered.

the shiites are just biding their time. they realize that once the occupation ends, they're going tobe the ones in charge. they stand to gain much by waiting.

[M1A2U2]

Theyve been saying this sae bull**** since the war began. Just more wishful thinking from squirel.

[Secret Squirrel]

Theyve been saying this sae bull**** since the war began. Just more wishful thinking from squirel.

Maybe you should team up with the french again on the left flank and solve all the problems in Iraq. rofl

[Lifeinasmallbox]

checkmate

[Sir Zach of R.]

Theyve been saying this sae bull**** since the war began. Just more wishful thinking from squirel.

Maybe you should team up with the french again on the left flank and solve all the problems in Iraq. rofl

Your credibility is pretty much shot M1A2. :|

[Argyll]

did he have any to start off with? :D

[Sir Zach of R.]

did he have any to start off with? :D

Eeee, good point.

[Turhapuro]

Frankly, I was more than a little perplexed on why the Shiites weren't ravaging the Sunnis after 33 years of murder, rape and oppression. Is it because Shiites are wimps (FYI: Not a flame, I really don't understand the dynamic).
Why? They can clearly see that in democracy, there is much better and ways to act. Because they are the majority, they will get the power without blowing themselves into pieces (+ coalition pressure).

Insurgents are doing insurgency because they cant win elections.

[M1A2U2]

just a bunch of people who cant understand sarcasm.

[1Cie GevGn]

just a bunch of people who cant understand sarcasm.

Maybe they can team up with the posers and link up with the right flank, there's this big gap in the line that was formed when your bag of **** exploded.