Good News From Iraq

I could either just rip off all of Instapundit's links, or simply link his post. It's easier to do the latter.

I'll quote this from one of his readers, though:

At first I was furious when I heard the news that the decision not to let the Marines have free reign in Fallujah was made by politicians in DC.

But now, after seeing what's happening there, it may have been brilliant to leave it for the Iraqis. Public opinion over there seems to be swinging our way big time, as they realize what's actually happening to their country.

I think I said some time ago that the quickest and easiest way to turn people against Islamists is to leave them to the the tender mercies of the Islamists.

Meanwhile, Iraqis seem to appreciate the anti-crime Dragnet in Baghdad.

Now, these are largely just common criminals, not actual terrorists. But certainly there's a broken-window effect of lawlessness that nutures and promotes terrorism, and surely terrorists rely on the criminal infrastructure for securing weapons and explosives and other necessary instruments of terror.

Allawi seems to be making a lot of necessary and politically-popular moves.

The Kurds are doing their part, too. (Scan to about the middle of the article).

In the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, Kurdish security forces captured 15 militants, including a man believed to be a senior leader in a local group linked to al-Qaida, an official in a pro-American Kurdish party said today.

"Terrorism isn't just killing and blowing up bombs, whoever threatens the ordinary life of the people is a terrorist," President Ghazi al-Yawer told a news conference. "We have a very sharp sword ready for anyone who threatens the security of this country."

Nice.

Not only is it great that terrorists have been captured, but it's better still that they were captured by Iraqi forces.