Local Heroes in Iraq, ch II
A carpenter named Dhia
from 
JoeUser Forums
JoeUser Forums
New York Times Link
As the gunmen emerged from their cars, Dhia and his young relatives shouldered their Kalashnikov rifles and opened fire, the police and witnesses said. In the fierce gun battle that followed, three of the insurgents were killed, and the rest fled just after the police arrived. Two of Dhia's nephews and a bystander were wounded, the police said.
Again, I saw it first on the Early Bird News, and it was so cool I had to share. While the article does point out the sectarian differences that may assist in fueling this sort of vigilanteism, it's still very refreshing to watch the tide turn even in small ways against the "bad guys".
In related news Link , although this isn't really new, the insurgents are wising up that the American "occupiers" are a little harder to take out than they'd like. Iraqi Security Forces and even civilians are much "softer" targets, but this seems to be creating some backlash amongst the populace. Could it be the Iraqis are actually blaming the people who detonate the bombs, and not the supposed targets (victims) of these attacks?
It seems that more and more lately, the attacks have become somewhat sparser but more intense. The insurgents may be saving up more and more for operations of greater impact. How soon before they run out of resources and manpower? How soon before they deplete whatever insanity inspired goodwill they might enjoy from the Iraqi people?
As the gunmen emerged from their cars, Dhia and his young relatives shouldered their Kalashnikov rifles and opened fire, the police and witnesses said. In the fierce gun battle that followed, three of the insurgents were killed, and the rest fled just after the police arrived. Two of Dhia's nephews and a bystander were wounded, the police said.
Again, I saw it first on the Early Bird News, and it was so cool I had to share. While the article does point out the sectarian differences that may assist in fueling this sort of vigilanteism, it's still very refreshing to watch the tide turn even in small ways against the "bad guys".
In related news Link , although this isn't really new, the insurgents are wising up that the American "occupiers" are a little harder to take out than they'd like. Iraqi Security Forces and even civilians are much "softer" targets, but this seems to be creating some backlash amongst the populace. Could it be the Iraqis are actually blaming the people who detonate the bombs, and not the supposed targets (victims) of these attacks?
It seems that more and more lately, the attacks have become somewhat sparser but more intense. The insurgents may be saving up more and more for operations of greater impact. How soon before they run out of resources and manpower? How soon before they deplete whatever insanity inspired goodwill they might enjoy from the Iraqi people?
Who knows?