Iraq Developments

Yesterday, President Bush officially ended 14 years of sanctions on Iraq. Another growing story, however, is the proposal for a Muslim force to assist in keeping order in the country. This is not as easy as it sounds, as many Muslim nations have small armies, especially once you take out Syria, Iran, and Turkey on the grounds they border Iraq. The main contributors would probably be Indonesia, Pakistan, and Egypt, and Pakistan at least is already occupied with the war against al-Qaeda along their border with Afghanistan. So I have reservations about whether this can generate troop levels that will make a significant difference to Americans. Juan Cole also mentions this plan, indicating that it will probably require the Bush administration to compromise and allow for UN organization of the effort. The good news there is that they might actually try given the importance of seeming to make progress in Iraq before the election.

UPDATE: Muqtada Sadr opposes the possibility of a Muslim force aiding the occupation.