Operation Get the Hell Outta Dodge!

After a little over 10 years of combat operations in Iraq, the long-awaited day is finally coming. The deadline for a (near) complete U.S. troop withdrawal is the final moments of this year, the 31st of December.

I say “near” complete as there are a few minor stipulations attached to this transition. Firstly, a select few U.S. military personnel will stay in-country to provide a security force for embassies and resident VIPs. Secondly, while the U.S. government’s army may be high-tailing it out of the country, many American citizens will still have their boots on Iraqi soil for the foreseeable future. Between citizens working in political, non-combat, roles and security contractors (aka Private Military Companies or PMCs), Iraq will remain a central part of American discourse far into the future.

Though let’s back up a moment. The continued presence of PMCs is startling as it seems to completely contradict the goal of “No U.S. combatants in Iraq”. While not technically working for the U.S. government, many PMCs have been contracted by none other than Washington, D.C. and many that are still there today share a close-association with political officials back in the states. While the number of PMC operators that will remain is relatively small, 4-5k, their mere presence, now and as far back as the war in Iraq stretches, does not sit well with some.

Bonus points if you know why this image is relevant...

For are we moving toward a future where war is privatized, monetized, even further than the already disturbed reality of today? Will your neighbor be building bombs rather than cars at the local factory? Selling firearms rather than T-shirts at the outlet mall? At what point did the hunt for profit outweigh the morality of war? Eisenhower warned the nation of the Military Industrial Complex years ago and yet here it stands, stronger than ever and spawning new minions in the form of Guns-for-Hire a la PMCs such as Xe (formerly BlackWater). These companies do not abide by the same rules as our servicemen and women do. A large factor in the sudden withdrawal of U.S. troops related to just that issue; U.S. military personnel were to have their legal “immunity” cut off had they stayed, leaving them subject to war crime charges such as murder and arson without the protective guise of those actions being “wartime necessities.” PMCs, likewise, will not have this layer of protection and may just ignore local laws regardless, only obeying those above them who pay their bills.

U.S. troops are leaving Iraq, though. That is progress. Whether or not America has abandoned its hand in the country is another matter altogether…

Source: Al Jazeera - U.S. Troop Withdrawal from Iraq