Baghdad Attacks

The attacks in Baghdad are a reminder of the work still to be done in securing that country. It is likely that the Islamic State of Iraq (Al Qa'ida in Iraq spin off) are responsible. The degree of systematic, co-ordinated violence is a hallmark of their operational strategy. The Iraqi government must pursue reconciliation alongside security operations. If Maliki does otherwise, he will risk further separation between Iraq's various sectarian groups. An outcome which is almost certainly the political intention of today's terrible attacks and an outcome that will risk a return to the violence of 2006.