Iraq: Tensions Ease with Iran

Iranian troops have reportedly begun to withdraw from a disputed oil well in Iraqi territory that Iran occupied last week (see our post).  However, according to Iraqi officials, the Iranians have only withdrawn 50 meters and refuse to return to the other side of the border. 

Juan Cole believes the standoff could have been an Iranian ploy to either influence the border demarcations, raise oil prices, threaten the U.S. and China, or be a way for Tehran to warn Iraq away from its campaign with Syria.  The Christian Science Monitor reports that many Iraqis and the U.S. fear that Iran will fill the void as the U.S. begins to withdraw.

The NY Times has a piece profiling Sunni sheikh Abdul-Rahman Munshid al-Assi, a former American prisoner and insurgent who has established the Arab Political Council to represent Sunnis in Kirkuk.  While opposing inclusion into the democratic system, the article argues that Abdul-Rahman is using political action “to tap into the simmering rage he says is still rampant.”  The sheikh and his cousins have entered politics to exploit another “tool” in the insurgent campaign to retake Kirkuk and restore Sunni authority.