Despite the ongoing refusal of the Bush Administration to admit that the inter-Iraqi violence is a civil war, the evidence is mounting that it is indeed a civil war. To be fully accurate, the warfare in Iraq is multi-faceted, with several related conflicts intertwining with each other to form the "War in Iraq." Let’s take a look at these various conflicts:
1. The “Iraq War” that Americans, Britons, and other foreigners are fighting in Iraq. This is the attempt to put down the Insurgency and stabilize the Iraqi government. Many Iraqis, particularly the Sunnis, refer to this as “The Resistance.” Part of the Resistance is against the Baghdad government, but the fuel that drives this aspect of the violence is, literally, the resistance to the Americans and other coalition partners. The Resistance includes various Sunni groups, including members of Saddam’s Baath Party and sectarian Sunnis who oppose the coalition and the Shiite-dominated government. Also part of this resistance are the foreign fighters often called “Jihadists”, many of whom are part of the “al-Qaida in Iraq” force formerly led by Abu Musad al-Zarqawi. Their goal is to drive the Coalition out, overthrow the government, and reduce Shiite power and influence. Many of the attacks by the Resistance targets foreign troops, forces and officials loyal to the government, and many of the attacks on the country’s infrastructure, including sabotage to the power grid, and the Iraqi oil industry.
2. The “Iraqi Civil War,” which is the fighting between the Shiites and the Sunni Arabs. This fighting destroys mosques, results in mass kidnappings and mass murders, and pitched battles between Shiite and Sunni militias in many urban areas of the country. Many of the militias and other groups that at times have fought the Coalition are involved in this battle, including the Baathists and the Shiite Mahdi Army, among others. Generally, the Coalition Allies have said they want to stay out of this inter-Iraqi conflict.
In addition to these overt conflicts, other Muslim nations are positioning themselves in a contest for influence and power in Iraq. Turkey is very concerned that if Iraq falls apart, the Iraqi north, controlled by Iraq’s Kurdish minority, may declare independence. This concerns the Turks due to a continuing rebellion in Turkey’s Kurdish areas near the border with Iraq. Also, Shiite Iran seeks to contain its own “Kurdish Problem,” while also working to influence the Shiite majority in Iraq to Iran’s advantage. Sunni Syria, ruled by a variant of the Baath Party, is also trying to shore up its influence in Iraq, partly as a way to influence the United States to pressure Israel into a peace agreement which would return the Golan Heights territory back to Syrian hands. Oil-rich Saudi Arabia, ruled by a sect of the Sunni branch of Islam, seeks to support the Sunni minority in Iraq against the Iranian-supported Shiites, while also hoping for stability in Iraq and the Gulf region as a whole. Instability is bad for business, after all.
So, to say that Iraq is not in civil war is misleading, if not downright wrong, while it is also too simplistic to say that it is merely in a state of civil war. The war in Iraq will only continue to become more complicated and more dangerous, not only for the concept of Iraq as a unified nation, but potentially for the entire Mideast region.
See also:
Bush Declines to Call Situation in Iraq Civil War. President Bush blamed Al Qaeda for the latest wave of sectarian violence and vowed not to withdraw troops “until the mission is complete.” By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG. [NYT > Home Page]
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