The two faces of Iraq

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http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/HJ07Ak02.html

DAMASCUS - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has a remarkable nerve. In July, she went to Israel in the midst of a Lebanon war in which thousands of civilians were being killed and insisted on not calling for a ceasefire until a final solution to Hezbollah was reached between Israel and Lebanon.

This week, she makes a surprise visit to Baghdad to show support for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, the man responsible for much of the violence and sectarian killing taking place in Iraq. Speaking at her press conference with Maliki, she said: "This is an important time and a challenge for the Iraqi people, but they are a strong people, they are committed people, and we know that they will overcome these challenges." She added: "I think he is a very good and strong prime minister."

Surely Rice should have know that the previous seven days had been horrendous for Iraq and that in September a total of 2,667 people were violently killed, while another 2,994 were injured. The only logical and blameworthy person for all this madness is the man leading the country, whose duty as prime minister is to bring security to his citizens.

The last thing they need are the confronting words of the US secretary of state, who seems to care little for the number of Iraqis dying per day, and the ineffective US military in the country, which is unable to end the raging insurgency.

The week prior to Rice's visit marked the highest death toll since the Iraqi war started in March 2003. On Wednesday, four US soldiers were killed southwest of Baghdad, bringing the total number of US troops killed over the previous seven days to 14. Officially, this brings the number of US troops killed in Iraq since March 2003 to 2,729. Most in the Arab world, and particularly in Iraq, estimate a much higher number.