A failure of leadership

Yesterday's Observer has a piece analysing the causes of atrocities by US soldiers against Iraqis. The chief cause? A failure of leadership which has allowed a culture of casual violence against Iraqis to grow and fester:

At the heart of the issue is a culture of violence against Iraqi civilians that has been present in large measure since the moment US forces crossed the border into Iraq - an inability and unwillingness to distinguish between civilians and combatants that as three years have passed has been transformed, for some, into something more deliberate.

From the shootings of civilians in Nasiriya by marines during the US advance to similar shootings by the Third Infantry Division on the outskirts of Baghdad during the so-called 'Thunder Run' into the city, the same pattern has reasserted itself. Indeed, within weeks of the fall of Saddam's regime it expressed itself in the moment that many now see as the starting point of the insurgency: the firing by US paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division into a noisy demonstration in Falluja.

And as the occupation and insurgency have dragged on, the sense of unaccountability has only increased...

As many have pointed out, this happens in wars. When you dehumanise an enemy hiding amongst the civilian population (as happens in guerilla wars), soldiers stop distinguishing. Officers are supposed to prevent this. Instead, the officers in chare of US forces in Iraq seem to just look the other way - or worse, actively conspire to cover up atrocities. After all, they were only "Hajis", right?

This failure of leadership extends all the way up the command chain. From squad leaders to generals, US officers have failed to make it clear to their subordinates that they are in Iraq for the benefit of Iraqis, and that they will not tolerate civilian casualties. Instead, the emphasis has been on "force protection" - American lives being apparently worth more than those of the people they are ostensibly "helping" - and this has given soldiers a blank cheque for atrocity.

The only way to stop this is by prosecutions - not just of the mooks at the bottom pulling the triggers, but of the officers who allowed this culture of impunity and atrocity to spread and grow and fester.

Meanwhile, there are signs the Iraqis are getting sick of it. On Friday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki denounced violence by US troops, and suggested that it may result in the Americans being told to go home sooner rather than later:

In his comments, Mr. Maliki said violence against civilians had become a "daily phenomenon" by many troops in the American-led coalition who "do not respect the Iraqi people."

"They crush them with their vehicles and kill them just on suspicion," he said. "This is completely unacceptable." Attacks on civilians will play a role in future decisions on how long to ask American forces to remain in Iraq, the prime minister added.

They're also demanding US files on the Haditha massacre so they can mount their own investigation. While there's no chance of US soldiers being turned over to face Iraqi justice - that will be ruled out by the Status of Forces Agreement the US "signed" with itself after toppling Saddam - it will at least result in some pressure on the US not to whitewash the whole thing.