By Charles Hoskinson
Sparked by a boycott of parliament by the Iraqiya coalition. The coalition, which represents much of Iraq’s Sunni Arab population, accused Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government of arbitrary arrests of its leaders’ aides and security guards. The crisis very quickly refocused attention on concerns about Iraq’s stability in the wake of the just-completed U.S. withdrawal. http://nyti.ms/tyMtkS

IRAQ ANALYST RAMZY MARDINI of the Institute for the Study of War tells us, “the White House failed to leave behind a representative government that respects the concept of power-sharing and the rule of law under the Iraqi constitution. Instead the central government … is riddled with sectarian and authoritarian elements that were bound to capitalize and expand after the departure of U.S. forces from Iraq.”

UNFINISHED BUSINESS – The last of eight Marines charged in an incident that helped define the U.S. presence for many Iraqis goes before a court-martial Jan. 24 at Camp Pendleton, Calif. Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich faces nine counts of voluntary manslaughter in the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha in 2005. The incident, widely described as a massacre, stirred up deep emotions both here and in Iraq against the behavior of those involved, but courtroom proceedings have painted a more mixed picture. Seven of the eight charged have been exonerated, and charges against Wuterich were downgraded from murder. http://bit.ly/u6wsD0

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