Baghdad at Surnise: A Brigade Commander’s War in Iraq
by P. Mansoor
In 2004, Mansoor stirred controversy by sending scores of correspondents a lengthy e-mail challenging media representations of the Iraq War with his own personal experience as an on-the-ground soldier. This compelling narrative goes much further, offering not only factual corrections of published accounts of battlefield events but also incisive analysis of overall American strategy. In reportage that crackles with the gunfire of street fighting, then segues into candid reflections on America’s military doctrines and policies, Mansoor draws readers directly into the tension of the Iraqi conflict. Readers feel the frustrations of American military leaders as victory over Saddam Hussein’s brutal regime unexpectedly lets loose a bloody cycle of sectarian violence. Those planning to establish a unified Iraqi democracy thus find themselves trying to defuse the lethal animosities dividing Ba’athists, Sunnis, Shiites, Kurds, and Syrian Catholics. Mansoor frankly confronts American errors—highlighting the wholesale disbanding of the Iraqi army, the initial deployment of American troops far from urban centers, and the abuse of Iraqi detainees—and he exposes serious deficiencies in American military training. But he strongly affirms the valor and resourcefulness of the American soldier.
A GOOD ACCOUNTING OF THE IRAQ WAR TO DATE.
