The United States has been operating in Iraq since 2003. We have paid dearly in both blood and treasure, and so have the Iraqi people. Although President Obama has repeatedly stated that we are pulling back from Iraq, we recently started bombing ISIS-held Tikrit, a strategically important Iraqi city. The best laid schemes…

In Tikrit, American airpower is supporting Iraqi troops and, interestingly, Iranian-backed Shiite militias. The presumed goal is to push out ISIS. Unfortunately, for all but the Americans, the operation does not seem to be time-sensitive.

From the NYT:

Missing from this picture was any sense of urgency. The holdouts from the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, who remain in the center of Tikrit are believed to number “about 400,” as one general here said. But the extremists have so far held off an offensive by an estimated 30,000 Iraqi troops and volunteer militiamen for nearly four weeks.

After refusing any American assistance, the Iraqi military formally requested it, and the American-led coalition began bombing on Wednesday, with explosions heard in the city as often as twice a minute at night. So far, at least, that has not spurred any Iraqi ground advance.

“There is a plan, and we are going as planned,” said Lt. Gen. Riyadh Jalal Tawfiq, the commander of Iraqi Army ground forces nationwide. “It’s a battle that’s going on right now,” he added. “We’re not in any hurry.”

They can see ISIS from their posts. Why are they waiting to engage?

The region is a mess. Amidst the chaos, the Americans are running on a condensed timeline; we want to stop ISIS now. Indeed, American decision-makers, led by politicians, tend to think in 4-year clips — as the sole superpower, we like to accomplish things, or appear to accomplish things, before moving on to the next crisis. It somehow shows our strength.

But the central Middle Eastern power struggle — Sunni vs. Shia — is thousands of years old and will not be solved anytime soon.

We are in a rush to beat back ISIS and make progress against radical Islamists. But “In Iraq,” an Iraqi official here said, “soon is two weeks, not two days.”

Originally published at brendanhartdotcom.wordpress.com on March 29, 2015.