Andrew Velnoskey
Staff Reporter
George Bush would always tell us we were winning the war. He would say that all we need is more time and more money. He would tell us that setting up a timetable for withdrawal would lead to disaster (as if his plan was leading to success). We had all grown sick of the usual George Bush rhetoric on Iraq, and most voters appreciated Barack Obama’s willingness to admit the truth: the war was a failure and something had to be done. Obama campaigned with a promise to end the war. But can he do it?
Obama’s plan for Iraq is for all U.S. combat troops to withdraw by August 2010, with about 50,000 soldiers staying behind to assist and train Iraqi forces. The remaining U.S. troops are scheduled to be removed by 2012. The current number of U.S. military in Iraq is over 135,000.
On March 25, 2009 a spokesman for the military stated that the number of attacks on both U.S. and Iraqi forces has fallen to its lowest level since August 2003. While that was not exactly a time of peace and harmony in Iraq, it did not see the violence that came later on after the country had been overrun by the insurgency and plunged into social unrest. According to the military, in the first two months of 2008, 148 U.S. soldiers were killed in Iraq. In the first two months of 2009, that number is only 19. The military credits aggressive joint U.S. and Iraqi efforts for the decrease. These efforts targeted and disrupted insurgent recruitment and financing.
Still, violence remains a common and grisly occurrence in Iraq. On March 26, 2009 a bomb exploded in Baghdad killing 16 people. This follows an attack on March 23 that killed nine, and three separate small scale attacks on March 25 that left several people wounded. While the numbers clearly show that overall violence in Iraq is down for the moment, it will have to stay at a low level for Obama’s plan to succeed. This week is an example of how quickly a few weeks of relative peace can be shattered by renewed attacks.
As Iraq continues moving toward a more democratic system, one cannot help but wonder if future elections and the removal of much of the U.S. presence will trigger more violence. It is good to know that we finally have a president with a plan. However, it is also clear that the plan is based on the fragile hope that the worst days of violence in Iraq are in the past. Only time will tell.