NewsHour’s Ray Suarez reports on violence that sprang up as Iraqi citizens lined up for early voting. The much anticipated parliamentary elections have moved forward, despite violence that has sprouted throughout the country to deter voters from making it to the polls. As democracy fights for a place on the Iraqi political stage, the Obama administration continues to talk about an impending withdrawal.
NewsHour’s Judy Woodruff interviews U.S. Army Brigadier General Ben Hodges of the Southern Region Command in Kandahar about the Marjah offensive. Hodges says that the focus in Marjah is on governance, despite military operations, and that he expects a few more weeks of fighting there before the mission is complete. Furthermore, he says the tactics used to fight insurgents in Marjah will be used as a model for future offensives.
In the lead up to the much anticipated March 7 parliamentary election in Iraq, VOA’s Deborah Block reports on the political climate in the country. Experts say they are looking to see if coalitions will be formed along nationalist or religious lines. More than four hundred candidates have been banned from running in the election, causing apprehension in the international community that election results may not be seen as legitimate — an outcome that would be a serious blow to Iraq’s democratic progress.
