The so-called "Sunni Triangle"...

[SerbPVO]

I was just watching CNN...they got this map of Iraq, with all the cities , places, positions of US troops, etc, on there.

There's also a large red triangle on the map, representing the Sunni Triangle.

Whenever there are American casualties in Iraq, the main thing we hear is that it happend in this "Sunni Triangle". Almost like an excuse. Pro-Saddam Sunnis must really not like the Americans or something;)

But whats interesting is...this triangle covers almost a HALF of the populated Iraq, not counting those western deserts, border with Iran or Kurdish north.

[Dave the Dawg]

I have no idea what graphics CNN is using, but your statements are erroneous.

The so-called "Sunni Triangle" is basically the populated areas along the Tigris River between Tikrit and western and northern Baghdad and along the Euphrates River between western Baghdad and Ramadi (Hadithah and even al-Qa'im are sometimes included, although the entire region from Ramadi west to the Syrian border is lightly populated; Bayji to the north of Tikrit is also sometimes counted). The lower Diyala River valley, from Baqubah to Baghdad, is also usually included.

This region does not "cover[] almost a HALF of the populated Iraq". In fact, it covers less than 1/6th. After Baghdad (more than half of whose population is Shi'ite Arab), the next 9 largest Iraqi cities are outside the "triangle". Ramadi (pop. 425,000; 11th place), Baqubah (280,000; 15th), Fallujah (275,000; 16th), Samarra' (200,000; 17th) and Bayji (120,000, tied for 20th) are the major population centers. Tikrit itself, BTW, is tiny, about 30,000 people. The most populated zones of Iraq are those Kurdish areas and the region along the two rivers from Baghdad to Basrah and along the Iranian border.

"Whenever there are American casualties in Iraq, the main thing we hear is that it happened in this 'Sunni Triangle'." Why is this an "excuse"? The "Sunni Triangle" is convenient shorthand for the media, many inhabitants of the region lost a lot of power and prestige when the Ba'athist regime fell and stand to lose even more if Iraq democratizes, and in fact the majority of US forces are concentrated in this region.

Although dating from last summer, this map roughly reflects the region concerned:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/images/030709-d-6570c-001-m.jpg

[XASA]

Dawg,

Excellent rebuttal to yet another inane post. It's educational, too ;)

[vitiaz]

Are all Baathists Sunni? Isn't Syria's Assad Baathist too?

Saudi Arabia is mostly Sunni, isnt it? Iran is Shiite correct?

Just trying to keep all this straight...

:cantbeli: