Just Build a Wall

Ah, the proven historical successes of walls. It worked in Germany and seems to be working for Israel-Palestine (note: sarcasm), we hope it will work on the US-Mexico border, why not try it in Iraq?

The New York Times' Michael R. Gordon has the details:

Trying to stem the infiltration of militia fighters, American forces have begun to build a massive concrete wall that will partition Sadr City, the densely populated Shiite neighborhood in the Iraqi capital.

On Wednesday night, huge cranes slowly lifted heavy concrete blocks into place under a moonless sky. The barriers were implanted on Al Quds Street, a major thoroughfare that separates the Tharwa and Jamilla districts to the south from the heart of Sadr City to the north.

The team building the barrier was protected by M-1 tanks, Stryker vehicles and Apache attack helicopters. As the workers labored in silence, there was a burst of fire as an M-1 tank blasted its main gun at a small group of fighters to the west. An Apache helicopter fired a Hellfire missile at a militia team equipped with rocket-propelled grenades, again interrupting the night with a thunderous boom. A cloud of dark smoke was visible in the distance through the Stryker’s night-vision system.

In fairness to the military leaders, erecting walls to contain dangerous enclaves has seen some success in curbing violence the past.

Concrete barriers have been employed in other areas of Baghdad. As the barriers were being erected in other neighborhoods, some residents said they feared being isolated. But walls have often proved to be an effective tool in blunting insurgent attacks.

However, such walls also have a history of increasing sectarian divisions. Much like the "success" of the surge, even if the wall does reduce violence, it will almost certainly exasperate the political divide consuming Iraq. The reduced violence is artificial. The US military is currently paying Shiite militias and Sunni tribal leaders to not fight us and each other (they still do, but to a mildly reduced degree). Setting up physical barriers between sects within the country fuels the "us versus them" mentality and reduces any chance of the various parties coming together. Just another example of the US plugging the hole in the dam with a finger.