As its commanders in Iraq expect the anti-American insurgency to escalate, Washington is considering a new get-tough strategy including enlisting Iraqi militias, writes Salah Hemeid The US-led administration in Iraq has reportedly agreed with leaders of the country's top political parties to create a militia responsible for cracking down on activists believed to be behind the Iraqi insurgency. According to The Washington Post the militias will be made up of troops selected along sectarian lines by the main parties in the Interim Governing Council (IGC). Each militia will have 700 to 1,000 members and will be split into groups under the command or guidance of American soldiers. US officials said no definite decision on the militia has been made, but the deteriorating security situation and the growing number of American casualties might swing opinion. Iraqi officials speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly from Baghdad said plans are already underway, and the groups have agreed that members of the force will abdicate party affiliation once they join. Iraqi political leaders from factions that have been close allies to the Americans have long argued that US soldiers were ill-equipped to gather intelligence on the insurgents and their activities. They also claim that the Iraqi police and the newly established Iraqi Civil Force do not have sufficient experience to handle the resistance fighters. Other reports suggest that the groups close to the US occupiers are also trying to establish an intelligence service to replace Saddam Hussein's notorious security agency which was abolished by the US occupation authority. Gathering intelligence remains a critical issue, particularly given the failure of American forces to obtain consistent and reliable information on the insurgents. The make-up of the militia and the intelligence service have raised concerns among many Iraqis, who are concerned that a militia comprising members of different parties could lead to violent factionalism. Sunni leaders have warned of a descent into civil war if former Kurdish rebels or Iran-trained Shi'ite militants are deployed in Sunni areas. A statement issued by the Committee of Muslim Ulama in Iraq -- a body set up after the ousting of Saddam in April -- said it would be "an attempt to break up Iraq". "This is a way to divide and rule by exploiting confessionalism and racism," the Sunni clerics said. Not all IGC members were consulted about the proposed militia, and some said that only the largest groups would contribute soldiers. According to the New Yorker, the Bush administration has authorised a major crackdown on insurgents in Iraq. According to American officials, the main target is a hard-core group of Ba'athists who are believed to be behind much of the attacks against US and allied soldiers. A new Special Forces group, Task Force 121, has been assembled from Army Delta Force members, Navy SEALs, and CIA paramilitary operatives, with many additional personnel ordered to report by January. Top priority is neutralisation of the Ba'athist insurgents. In an attempt to root out Iraqi rebels, American forces are surrounding entire villages with barbed wire and demolishing buildings thought to be used by Iraqi attackers. They have also begun imprisoning the relatives of suspected guerrillas in the hope of pressurising the insurgents into turning themselves in. The Americans launched this get-tough strategy in early November, goaded by what proved to be the deadliest month yet for American forces in Iraq, with 81 soldiers killed by hostile fire. Their response is beginning to echo the Israeli counter-insurgency campaign in the occupied Palestinian territories. American officials, however, insist they are not mimicking Israeli tactics. The new strategy, they say, is based on the conviction that a tougher approach will quell insurgency, and will serve as an example to ordinary Iraqis who fail to cooperate with the allied forces. American commanders say the new approach is working; the threat to American soldiers is being reduced despite the daily attacks. The new approach, however, appears to be alienating many of the people the Americans are trying to win over. Experts agree that failure to rapidly quell the violence may result in major insurgency. On Sunday the top US commander in Iraq issued a grim warning that violence is set to rise in the run-up to the hand-over of power to Iraqis. Lt General Ricardo Sanchez, the man charged with stabilising post-war Iraq, vowed the coalition would eventually capture or kill Saddam, describing him as "the needle in the haystack" and "a hard problem". "We expect to see an increase in violence as we move towards the transfer of sovereignty at the end of June," he said, predicting that anti-coalition forces would make an attempt to sabotage the transfer. Faced with a self-imposed deadline to transfer authority this summer to an interim government, American officials also appear eager to increase the international legitimacy of their efforts in Iraq. US Secretary of State Colin Powell urged NATO to consider expanding its activities in Iraq. "The United States welcomes a greater NATO role in Iraq's stabilisation," Powell said in a speech to fellow NATO ministers on Thursday in the Bush administration's most pointed appeal for international help since it went to war in the spring. He also called for more involvement from the United Nations.
