.Hail Mary Pass
BAGHDAD — “Oh man … no way we are doing this.”
It was the first time in my life I had ever overtaken an American convoy in a civilian car, and I couldn’t believe we were doing it until we were actually beside them.
It was an historical moment for me and maybe for Iraq.
I can’t deny that I felt victorious at that moment, because the car was speeding up to overtake an American convoy, not slowing down, as usual, to let them drive 100 meters ahead of you.
The Iraqis are not taking orders anymore, or at least that how it looked during this trip. Because even when we stopped at the traffic light, an American soldier got off his Humvee and waved kindly at us to move on.
There are many changes lately. The Iraqi security forces are getting stronger and more independent. More than that, the Americans seem determined to improve their reputation in Iraq.
Our car contained me, a correspondent and a guard. A debate began about whether this meant that the Iraqis are taking over from the Americans or not.
Two contradictory opinions were presented.
It was good because we were finally discussing something positive and useful and has nothing to do with death or killing.
“This isn’t the first time. It has happened a lot lately,” said the guard.
He was confident and sure that the Iraqi government and especially Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki had became stronger and could impose their decisions on the Americans.
He said that Maliki has a fixed position, especially relating to the negotiations over the security agreement between the Iraqi government and the Americans, and that the Americans would have to accept his conditions and he may be able to lift their immunity in the future.
The driver was mocking his words, and showed a dissenting opinion by saying that the Americans are not changeable and their actions in the future will be similar to their actions in the past and present.
He added that Maliki wouldn’t be able to change anything because he depends on the Americans a lot. “They are behaving politely like this just to gain temporary benefits,” he said.
For me, they were both right. We never had a clear clue about the American policy in Iraq, so it’s hard to judge what’s really going on.
I told them it would be impossible to lift or even think of lifting the American immunity because this would mean ending their presence in Iraq.
I told them that the Iraqi government needs to show some strictness in dealing with the American forces but I was sure that they won’t be able to lift the immunity from the Americans. The Iraqi government needs the presence of the American forces more than anyone in Iraq, at least that’s what I think.
I believe that everybody is doing the right thing right now, but the question is: will the progress get going, or will we get unexpected obstacles as usual.
Baghdad Bureau
Poor Iraqis, they have been so "held down" that anything to them feels of a victory. If only they understood that America wants friend, not enemies.
It was the first time in my life I had ever overtaken an American convoy in a civilian car, and I couldn’t believe we were doing it until we were actually beside them.
It was an historical moment for me and maybe for Iraq.
I can’t deny that I felt victorious at that moment, because the car was speeding up to overtake an American convoy, not slowing down, as usual, to let them drive 100 meters ahead of you.
The Iraqis are not taking orders anymore, or at least that how it looked during this trip. Because even when we stopped at the traffic light, an American soldier got off his Humvee and waved kindly at us to move on.
There are many changes lately. The Iraqi security forces are getting stronger and more independent. More than that, the Americans seem determined to improve their reputation in Iraq.
Our car contained me, a correspondent and a guard. A debate began about whether this meant that the Iraqis are taking over from the Americans or not.
Two contradictory opinions were presented.
It was good because we were finally discussing something positive and useful and has nothing to do with death or killing.
“This isn’t the first time. It has happened a lot lately,” said the guard.
He was confident and sure that the Iraqi government and especially Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki had became stronger and could impose their decisions on the Americans.
He said that Maliki has a fixed position, especially relating to the negotiations over the security agreement between the Iraqi government and the Americans, and that the Americans would have to accept his conditions and he may be able to lift their immunity in the future.
The driver was mocking his words, and showed a dissenting opinion by saying that the Americans are not changeable and their actions in the future will be similar to their actions in the past and present.
He added that Maliki wouldn’t be able to change anything because he depends on the Americans a lot. “They are behaving politely like this just to gain temporary benefits,” he said.
For me, they were both right. We never had a clear clue about the American policy in Iraq, so it’s hard to judge what’s really going on.
I told them it would be impossible to lift or even think of lifting the American immunity because this would mean ending their presence in Iraq.
I told them that the Iraqi government needs to show some strictness in dealing with the American forces but I was sure that they won’t be able to lift the immunity from the Americans. The Iraqi government needs the presence of the American forces more than anyone in Iraq, at least that’s what I think.
I believe that everybody is doing the right thing right now, but the question is: will the progress get going, or will we get unexpected obstacles as usual.
Baghdad Bureau
Poor Iraqis, they have been so "held down" that anything to them feels of a victory. If only they understood that America wants friend, not enemies.
posted by madtom at 6:05 PM
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