Frustrated Iraqis ready to take law into own hands
By Luke BakerMon Jul 18, 9:03 AM ET
Iraqis have begun barricading themselves in their homes and forming neighborhood militias in an effort to fend off relentless suicide attacks, residents in the capital said on Monday.
The measures come amid waning confidence in the Iraqi police and other security forces as they struggle to get on top of the two-year-old insurgency. In the latest attack, 98 people were killed by a suicide truck bomb south of Baghdad on Saturday.
A senior member of Iraq's parliament on Sunday called for popular militias to be created as an extra line of defense against the militants, and criticized the government for failing to stop the bombs.
"The plans of the interior and defense ministries to impose security in Iraq have failed," Khudair al-Khuzai told parliament during a heated session following the latest blast. "We need to bring back popular militias," he said, without expanding.
While there was some backing for his proposal, there are concerns militias formed along sectarian lines could lead the country ever closer to civil war, with Shi'ite and Sunni Arabs already involved in tit-for-tat killings.
Despite that fear, local militias have already been formed in several Baghdad areas, and at least two Shi'ite political movements have their own powerful private armies.
In the Sadiya district in the south of the capital, residents have introduced a neighborhood watch program which involves men armed with pistols and AK-47s walking the streets from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. on alert for attackers.
They carry a piece of paper signed by the Iraqi army granting them permission to carry out the patrols.
In several other districts residents have blocked off streets with the trunks of chopped-down palm trees, or with large concrete flower pots, to try to stop suicide car bombers.
BOMB BARRICADES
"It's better to have our own militias because we can recognize every stranger who comes into our neighborhood and the police can't," said Sattar Hashim in New Baghdad, a district where a bomb blast last week killed nearly two dozen children.
Hashim said local men guarding the area at the funerals of those killed in the blast detained a Libyan man strapped with explosives who was aiming to attack the ceremonies.
Neighbors supported the informal security.
"When they blocked this road, less people came to my shop and sales went down, but I don't mind as long as we're all safer," said Sheikh Mohammed, the owner of a herbal pharmacy on a street blocked off by water pipes, gates and palm tree trunks.
In Aadhamiya and Karrada, two other Baghdad districts, shopkeepers and homeowners have boarded up or put thick tape on the insides of windows to prevent blasts splintering the glass. Others have fortified their doorways to foil kidnappers.
"We are scared even inside our homes -- we expect attacks at any moment," said Hamid Hashim, a teacher in Aadhamiya who has padlocks on his doors. "Our children are never allowed out of the house, even if that may hurt them psychologically."
Shi'ite lawmakers are growing increasingly frustrated and fear militants will succeed in their aim of provoking sectarian conflict if greater efforts are not made to quell the insurgency.
"The multinational forces have to take responsibility for the bloodshed," said Sheikh Jalal-el-din al-Sagheer, a member of the main Shi'ite bloc in parliament.
(Additional reporting by Seif Fouad and Mussab al-Khairalla)
On one hand, I'm proud of the Iraqi people saying "enough is enough" and takingsecurity into their own hands. I believe our Founding Fathers would be proud.
But on the other, feuding religious sects or even feuding neighborhoods could indeed spark a civil war. I'm not so convinced it will happen as long as we maintain a strong presence in the country, but nothing is certain until the Iraqi Army and National Guard get up to strength and show they can handle themselves in the field.
For the moment, however, I suppose the end justifies the means. I don't think I could justsit there locked in my house for months on end while murderers blow up dozensof civilians right outside the door.[/align]
We can stay there forever and still only do a certain amount of good. Final resolution will only come when the Iraqi people decided enough is enough. It appears they are beginning to lean that direction.
__________________
You may beat the rap, but you won't beat the ride!
Popular Militia Growing In Iraq
