Michael Totten is in Ramadi reporting on events in Iraq that the anti-war mainstream press would like to pretend are not really happening. This is not how it was supposed to work out.
When the Army Soldiers at Blue Diamond took me along on their missions I could see why so many reporters write off Ramadi as a place where nothing happens: I was sent along in a convoy of Humvees to the outskirts of the city in a palm grove to attend an adult literacy class for women.
The class was cancelled at the last minute, though, so our trip to the palm grove was actually pointless. But Iraqis descended on us from their countryside houses and kept us busy happily socializing for hours.
Experiences like this are now typical for the infantrymen of the United States military, but extraordinary for a civilian like me who isn’t accustomed to casually hanging out with Arabs in Iraq’s notorious Sunni Triangle.
I was greeted by friendly Iraqis in the streets of Baghdad every day, but the atmosphere in Ramadi was different. I am not exaggerating in the least when I describe their attitude toward Americans as euphoric.
Grown Iraqi men hugged American Soldiers and Marines.
Young men wanted me to take their pictures with their arms around American Soldiers and Marines. The Americans seemed slightly bored with the idea, but the Iraqis were enthusiastic.
Children hugged State Department civilian reconstruction team leader Donna Carter.
Ramadi has changed so drastically from the terrorist-infested pit that it was as recently as April 2007 that I could hardly believe what I saw was real. The sheer joy on the faces of these Iraqis was unmistakable. They weren’t sullen in the least, and it was pretty obvious that they were not just pretending to be friendly or going through the hospitality motions.
Al Qaeda is all but finished in Anbar. There is virtually no support for religious fanaticism there, and what's more, attitudes among the Iraqis of Anbar has been spreading. In a this post Totten links to a Fox News report of Shiite tribal sheiks in Wasit province who want the same deal with the Americans as the Sunnis of Anbar.
KUT, Iraq — American commanders in southern Iraq say Shiite sheiks are showing interest in joining forces with the U.S. military against extremists, in much the same way that Sunni clansmen in the western part of the country have worked with American forces against Al Qaeda.
Sheik Majid Tahir al-Magsousi, the leader of the Migasees tribe here in Wasit province, acknowledged tribal leaders have discussed creating a brigade of young men trained by the Americans to bolster local security as well as help patrol the border with Iran.
He also said last week's assassination of Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha, who spearheaded the Sunni uprising against Al Qaeda in Anbar province, only made the Shiite tribal leaders more resolute.
"The death of Sheik Abu Risha will not thwart us," he said. "What matters to us is Iraq and its safety."
A repeat of the Anbar experience in Shiite regions may very well mark the tipping point against al Qaeda and the Iranian backed militias. How odd that this is exactly what the Democrats in congress have been trying so desperately to prevent by declaring the war lost and demanding the troops be withdrawn. Years ago they had bet their political fortunes on defeat in Iraq. While Bush and his generals have been working desperately to bring democracy to Iraq, congressional Democrats have been desperately working to turn each grim setback to their own political advantage. Anbar is changing the equation and it may also mark a turning point against congressional Democrats.
Read all of Totten's report. He's got pictures, too.
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