Region | Iraq
Iraqis split over benefits of US troop withdrawal
An expected phased reduction in US troops in Iraq after the resignation of US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld left Iraqis split yesterday on whether a withdrawal would be in their best interest.
- Reuters
- Published: 00:00 November 10, 2006
Baghdad: An expected phased reduction in US troops in Iraq after the resignation of US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld left Iraqis split yesterday on whether a withdrawal would be in their best interest.
While a majority of Iraqis want to see the departure of Washington's 150,000 troops, according to a recent poll, many fear an early pullout would worsen an already bleak situation as rival groups may vie for control and violence escalates.
Abu Abdullah, a member of the Sunni minority from the northern city of Mosul, said his sect, fighting in an anti-US rebellion, needs US protection from Shiite militants.
"I prefer them to stay in Iraq because we Sunnis are very weak at the current time," the 38-year-old man said.
"If they withdraw, then the militias will become bolder and the fighting will increase," he added.
US officials say violence between the country's rival Shiite and Sunni sects has become more of a threat to Iraq's stability than the Sunni insurgency in central Iraq.
Others argue that the presence of US troops has not stopped daily killings and their absence may reduce violence.
"What good have they done in Iraq? If the Americans are holding us back from fighting terrorists then we don't need them," said Mohammad Khalil, 40-year-old Shiite tea vendor as he stirred sugar and cinnamon into his small glass.
"I see them as a hurdle to our ambitions, Iraq will become stable if they leave us alone," he added.
Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki has openly criticised the US military for not providing him more say over his own forces.
He has resisted US and Sunni pressure to disarm Shiite militias linked to parties in his coalition while insisting on the need to focus fighting against Saddam Hussain's Sunni Baath supporters and Sunni Al Qaida militants.
In the Shiite city of Hilla, Hashim Al Araji, a 55-year-old man who repairs cars, blamed Iraq's woes solely on the United States but still voiced pessimism for Iraq's future.
"Will it make a difference if we asked them to leave?," he said. "In the end, they are the only ones who can make that decision."
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