Whether it is called “soft partition” or “federalism”, the current American strategy in Iraq will in effect lead to further segregation of the Iraqi population. To be fair, the exile and internal displacement of millions of Iraqis was started by al Qaeda fighters, who deliberately stoked hatred between Sunnis and Shiites by bombing Shiite religious shrines and marketplaces. The Shiite dominated central government then sided with Shiite militias and police forces in retaliation. Granted in such a chaotic condition it was difficult to tell the difference between al Qaeda fighters and innocent Sunni civilians, many of whom were sympathetic to the insurgents if not secretly aiding them. American forces, often under attack from the same Sunni fighters, ......

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