I admit that I lost interest in Iraq a couple of years ago, but his story especially caught my attention because the last time I paid any attention to Iraq, I noticed a consistent theme -- "two terrorists disguised as policemen blew up this building"...."four terrorists disguised as policemen bombed that building." At some point you have to wonder whether these guys got their disguises by applying to the police force and receiving training and getting paid and then being issued police uniforms. Anyhoo....everytime I read these articles I come away thinking, "WTF?"
...the gist of the article is that security gains mean everything is better, right? so consider some pertinent statements in the article....
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A year ago, "the terrorists controlled this town," says Mr. Gaaod. "...we have the police, the Army, and intelligence. The people are not afraid of the terrorists anymore..."
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Since early 2007, the number of Iraqi police in Anbar has grown from 11,000 to 23,000.
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"Because of the operational tempo [of Iraqi and US forces], Al Qaeda doesn't have a main operating area where they can regroup, plan, or resupply," says a senior US military official."
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So far so good, right? We've defeated Al Qaeda in Anbar, and the Anbarnese have a grip on the security situation vis a vis their police forces, right?
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"Many of the Al Qaeda operatives have just changed into a police uniform," says an Iraqi police colonel in Ramadi who has policed Iraq for 23 years. "Maybe they will go back to killing people if the situation changes."
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WTF?!? That would certainly help get the number of police from 11,000 to 23,000. But if al qaeda wearing masks in Anbar was so bad for the US, then I can't see how al qaeda wearing police uniforms is so much better for the US.