In Iraq, 2 Key U.S. Allies Face Off

Iraqi soldiers take position after coming under fire following Saturday's arrest of Awakening leader Adil Mashadani in the Fadhil area of Baghdad. Fighting continued yesterday as troops swept into the district to arrest Sunni fighters. (By Hadi Mizban -- Associated Press)

Government Riles Sunni Awakening With Leader's Arrest

By Sudarsan Raghavan and Anthony Shadid
Washington Post Foreign Service
Monday, March 30, 2009

BAGHDAD, March 29 -- A new and potentially worrisome fight for power and control has broken out in Baghdad as the United States prepares to pull combat troops out of Iraq next year.

The struggle, which played out in fierce weekend clashes, pits two vital American allies against each other. On Sunday, Iraqi soldiers backed by U.S. combat helicopters and American troops swept into a central Baghdad neighborhood, arresting U.S.-backed Sunni fighters in an effort to clamp down on a two-day uprising that challenged the Iraqi government's authority and its efforts to pacify the capital.

But the fallout from the operation is already rippling far beyond the city's boundaries. Both the Iraqi security forces and the Sunni fighters, known as the Awakening, are cornerstones in the American strategy to bring stability. The Awakening, in particular, is widely viewed as a key reason violence has dramatically dropped across Iraq.

(More here.)