Iraqis await US withdrawal with pride, trepidation (Feature)

By Kadhem al-Attabi Jun 19, 2009, 12:10 GMT

Baghdad - The Iraqi government is planning a party.

On 30 June, Iraqis will celebrate the withdrawal of US soldiers from their cities and towns. But while many in Baghdad say they are pleased to see the US soldiers leave, some say they are also concerned that longstanding, bitter disputes among Iraqis may flare when US soldiers step back.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has declared the 'blessed day' a public holiday in celebration of the partial US withdrawal and of the anniversary of the 1920 revolt against the British occupation of Iraq.

The planned US withdrawal will be 'a testament to the success of the Iraqi government,' al-Maliki said last week.

'There may be some acts of violence and attempts to murder members of the Iraqi forces, but they stand ready,' he said.

'Yes, it will be a day for celebration, but the situation is still fragile,' Samir al-Shamari, a 41-year-old civil servant, told the German Press Agency dpa.

'There are still great disagreements among the parties,' he said. 'They all will need to exert self-discipline and think of the greater good to avoid any surprises when the US soldiers leave.'

'The Iraqi forces have not been truly Iraqi forces these past years,' said Abbas al-Bayati, a member of the Iraqi parliament's committee on defence and security.

'Their motions throughout the country have been dependent on the good will of the political parties, and, particularly in areas most prone to terrorist attacks, on close cooperation with the US forces,' he said.

'In particularly tense areas, where there is a particular risk of terrorist attacks, cooperation between US and Iraqi forces will be especially close. The amount of cooperation will be determined by the extent of the terrorist threat in an area,' al-Bayati said.

'But the important thing is that the commander of the Iraqi forces will truly be the commander,' he added. 'He will not have to ask anyone's permission to take necessary action, but will be beholden only to the constitution and the relevant laws.'

Al-Bayati noted the rapid increase in the number of Iraqi policemen, soldiers and intelligence officers, and said he looked forward to the day when Iraq had its own air force and air defence systems.

But some worry that in the absence of a political solution to the many burning issues that continue to divide Iraqis, the armed forces will become politicized.

For the sake of short-term peace and stability, the government has so far delayed serious discussion on status of Kirkuk and other areas claimed by Baghdad and the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.

Likewise, a dispute still simmers over amendments to the constitution that would allow hundreds of thousands of former low-ranking Baath Party members to return to public-sector jobs they lost in the post-war government's 'de-Baathification' programme.

'The US administration has said the withdrawal of US troops will force Iraqi politicians not to create problems and return Iraq to 'square one',' Farqad Hamid, a 36-year-old engineer, said.

'But the people don't trust the leaders,' Hamid said. 'They're isolated, and they're in the pocket of outsiders who don't want what's best for the country.'