Iraqis fear early U.S. pullout of troops

BAGHDAD (AP) — Unnerved by bombings that have killed hundreds this summer, many Iraqis are losing faith in their own security forces and fear the Americans are leaving too quickly.

The misgivings about the U.S. pullback from the cities, and even about the Dec. 31, 2011, deadline for a full withdrawal, come at a time when a senior U.S. officer has suggested the Americans declare victory and leave even sooner.

Iraqis, including military commanders, believe their security forces aren’t ready to act alone.

“We do not want a hasty withdrawal. The Americans have promised a responsible withdrawal in coordination with the Iraqi government, and they should live up to their commitments,” said Abbas al-Bayati, chairman of parliament’s security committee.

A security pact by the U.S. and Iraqi governments lays out the timetable, but this summer’s attacks mainly targeting Shiites and minority groups in northern Iraq and Baghdad have shaken public confidence.

At least 520 Iraqis have been killed, 378 of them in bombings, since June 30, the date the withdrawal from the cities was completed, according to an Associated Press tally.

“I don’t blame Sunnis for these cruel attacks that Shiites are suffering from now. There are political reasons behind them,” Ali Jassim, a 45-year-old Shiite store owner in Baghdad, said after bombings in Mosul and Baghdad on Monday. “What do these government promises and assurances that security is under control mean? I strongly demand that the Americans return to the streets and with even more presence than before.”

Though past attacks have led to sectarian retaliation, Iraqis now focus their anger on government forces and political stagnation. The Shiite-led government is criticized for failing to use its gains against insurgents to promote reconciliation with Sunnis.

Still, the Pentagon found in a recent report to Congress that more than 80 percent of Iraqis surveyed in April said they had confidence Iraq’s army and police could protect them, compared with just 27 percent for American forces.

This is the contradiction Iraqis face: They badly want their country back but remain heavily dependent on the U.S. military to help clear roadside bombs, deploy attack aircraft, gather intelligence and even make weather forecasts for flights.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki appears eager to see the Americans leave and has urged Iraqis to hold steady against continued violence, calling the U.S. withdrawal from cities a great victory and portraying himself as the leader who defeated terrorism and ended the American occupation.

Despite the unrelenting bombings, the government has announced that it plans to remove by mid-September most of the concrete blast walls that have turned Baghdad into a prisonlike maze as part of its campaign to project normalcy ahead of national elections.