Recommended Reading-Iraqi Police

Bill at INDC Journal just posted a detailed firsthand assessment of the the Fallujah Police Transition Team Mission. He concludes:

"Like so many other aspects of Iraq, the outlook for the Fallujan police shows signs of both promise and despair. The political and cultural impediments to the formation of an effective police force are steep: Fallujah is not historically a city with a strong tradition of altruistic civil service, and the insurgents more casually wield violence, the most important currency in Iraq. American advisors are charged with teaching Fallujan cops Western standards of law enforcement, when in reality the IPs are fighting an insurgency, not crime. It's a bit ironic that restrictive rules of engagement and Western standards of policing are compelled on the American mission by a watchful western media and political leadership, when our own standards would undoubtedly evaporate in the face of the violence that the Fallujans are facing."

A great read and full of amazing pictures as well. For more on the readiness of Iraq's security forces go here and here.