It seems like every time we hear someone say the insurgency is fizzling out
then they prove to us they are still alive and well. Last week we heard this
claim:

Washington — Insurgents in Iraq are showing little capacity to keep up
numerous and persistent attacks, a senior U.S. general in Baghdad says.

At a briefing December 29, Air Force Brigadier General C.D. Alston said
there are three reasons for the diminishing capability of the insurgents to
keep up attacks. The ability of insurgents to wage sustained combat is a key
indicator closely watched by U.S. military forces to determine the enemy’s
effectiveness.

Article continues
here.

Today this is the big headline from Iraq:

13 Car Bombs Wound 20 People Across Iraq

Read article

here.

Much like when Cheney made his infamous “last throes” comment about the
insurgency back in the spring, we are once again reminded that they are still
going strong. I highly doubt they just gave up because of the elections last
month. My guess is they slowed down while waiting for the outcome and now that
it is looking pretty solid that the Shia’s are going to be in charge, the
insurgency will start up again.

I put stories like this together and also think back to all those times
administration officials and Republicans on the hill make the claim that when
someone speaks against the war al Jazeera plays it over and over again to help
build up the insurgency. I never could really see that being used as a tool to
promote the insurgency and I constantly check al Jazeera’s website and never see
the information listed there. What I do think is maybe they run reports like
Cheney saying the insurgency is in its “last throes” or the one Gen. Alston had
and that provokes them to once again prove they are still going strong.

It does seem as though the war has taken a turn in the way we fight it
though. Airstrikes seems to be the main course of action now and is even brought
up in an article in today’s
London
Times:

AMERICAN forces are dramatically stepping up air attacks on insurgents in
Iraq as they prepare to start the withdrawal of ground troops in the spring.
The number of airstrikes in 2005, running at a monthly average of 25 until
August, surged to 120 in November and an expected 150 in December, according
to official military figures.

The tempo looks set to increase this year as the Americans pull back from
urban combat, leaving street fighting increasingly to Iraqi forces supported
by US air power.

Article continues
here.

Actually the more we hear about these kind of changes the more it sounds like
the administration is going by the Murtha plan. After months of arguing by
Republicans saying the Democrats never had a plan, Murtha put one out and they
immediately attacked it. Now the administration is silently following some key
parts of it. Oh the filth of politics.

The next month should be interesting and give us a good indicator of how
things are going in Iraq as the new government starts to take form. With 10,000
Kurds ready to seize Kirkuk in the north and Sunni’s vowing more attacks because
of the Shia government, unless something is done to compromise things will most
likely get worse before they get better.