Iraqis fearful after US exit amid violence, shortages (News Feature)

By Yasmin El-Rifae Aug 19, 2010, 13:04 GMT

Baghdad - Many Iraqis are growing increasingly anxious about their country's uncertain future, as they watch United States troops withdraw from Iraq amid daily violence, a political deadlock and insufficient basic services.

'I fear for Iraq because the coming danger will not only be from al-Qaeda or militants, but from political entities which have proven that they are a ticking time bomb,' government employee Abdelhassan al-Amri, 48, said in Basra.

The last of the US combat troops quietly left the country for neighbouring Kuwait before dawn on Thursday, seven years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime.

The US will maintain 50,000 troops in the country until 2011 to advise the Iraqi forces, which are now fully responsible for the country's security.

Many people do not think Iraq is prepared for the US pullout. Babaker Zebari, Iraq's top army chief, said recently that he did not think the Iraqi military would be ready to take over the country for another decade.

Iraq's political leadership, meanwhile, is still in disarray five months after parliamentary elections, as the winning parties remain unable to form a new government.

Neither former prime minister Ayad Allawi's Iraqiya List nor current Premier Nuri al-Maliki's State of Law coalition has enough seats to form a majority, and they have been unable to agree upon who should form the new government.

Talks between leaders of the various blocks have been unsteady and fruitless, with negotiations often falling apart amid bickering and accusations as the country struggles with violence.

'The everyday sight of those injured or killed by violence remains painful to all of us,' Mohamed el-Rabie, a medical doctor, said.

Daily bomb attacks, shootings and kidnappings by al-Qaeda and other armed groups plague the country. The violence and targeted death threats have driven millions of Iraqi to flee to other nearby countries, where they often live in desperate circumstances.

'I lost my brother when he was kidnapped on his way to work in 2003,' said Ebtehag Saadi, a teacher in Baghdad. 'I am still shocked by what happened to him and I cannot go to or from work without being accompanied by my husband out of fear. I think there are a lot of cases like this.'

According to Iraqi authorities, July was the bloodiest month the country had seen in over two years, with 535 civilians reportedly killed. The US disputes that claim, placing the death tool at less than half.

Iraqis have also been left without basic services, such as water and electricity, for long stretches of the day.

The electricity shortages have been especially problematic, with power cuts often lasting up to 18 hours a day. With summer temperatures exceeding 50 degrees Celsius, this has led to public outrage and widespread protests.

'The most notable thing which the invasion brought us was the removal of Hussein,' Saadi said. 'Other than that, there is not a single achievement we can speak of.'