Our military working fast in Iraq
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Flush with intelligence, the U.S. military moved quickly Friday to take advantage of the power vacuum left by the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, carrying out nearly 40 raids in an effort to stop his terror network from regrouping.My count is up to 56 (17 and 39) raids. That's a significant amount of activity.
I see this as have a cascade effect, at least in the short term. As these raids yield even more actionable intel, I see us causing major damage to the terrorist networks in Iraq. It will take time for what's left to regroup - months, perhaps.
That's valuable time for the Iraqi military to spend training and standing up instead of dodging bombs and bullets at recruiting stations.
That's valuable time to repair infrastructure - and for a change, faster than it's being sabataged.
That's valuable time for the new government to make progress instead of stamping out fires.
Yes, I'm pinning a lot of hopes on this in a week when nearly everyone is expressing caution. And the current effort by the troops could cease bearing fruit rapidly. But somehow I sense that there is a turning point being approached.
And I'm normally a pessimist.
