Shi'ite fight shows other side of the COIN
The struggle between Iraqi forces and Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army calls into question the US's new counterinsurgency doctrine (COIN) and bodes ill for the country's stabilization. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has made a big gamble - if the fighting causes more misery in southern Iraq, his government will be doomed by its chief constituency. - Ehsan M Ahrari (Mar 31, '08)