A surprisingly upbeat week! The fact that Prime Minister Maliki’s finally filled the key posts of Minister of Interior & Defense was probably the most important news.  The PM is pushing to make quick & noticeable progress in security and he needed these key leaders to help move forward with his plan. He has shown himself to be much more proactive than what we've seen in the past leadership, but he'll need consistent results.

The removal of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi from the equation has given many people around here a chance to exhale!  To be sure, this is a welcome success given the slow visible progress coupled with the constant drumbeat of negative news.  His removal won’t change the situation on the ground much, but he was a major an icon, recruiter, and fund raiser for some of the most extreme elements out there.  This may be an opportunity now to coax some of more reasonable “resistance” elements to the political process.