from SLATE: >The New York Times leads with a look at how Iraq's government is celebrating >the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from its cities by June 30, which, >contrary to what many expected, appears to be moving along right on schedule. >...
> To the surprise of many, American commanders have closed outposts even in > cities such as Baghdad and Mosul, where they had tried to maintain some > presence but were rejected by Iraqi officials. Prime Minister Nouri Kamal > al-Maliki calls it a "great victory," and Tuesday has been declared a > national holiday. American officials have largely fulfilled Maliki's demands, > and Iraqis are starting to realize they're not seeing as many U.S. troops as > they once did patrolling the streets. Far from celebrating though, many > Iraqis are worried about the potential of increasing violence, which could > end up deteriorating Maliki's power base. Yesterday, at least seven bombs > exploded around the country, a day after at least 76 people were killed by a > bomb that exploded in Baghdad's Sadr City. "When the Americans get out of > city centers, a big war will start," one woman said. (Early-morning wire > stories report that a bomb exploded in Baghdad today, killing at least 13 > people.)< -- Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
