Michael Yon follows up on his widely publicized chronicle of the reopening of St. John’s, venturing inside for the first Mass and relaying a message from the local Muslims to their Christian former neighbors to come home. That raises a key logistical question touched on yesterday in WaPo’s front-pager on the Iraqi government’s paralysis:
Officials identified other potential problems flowing from reductions in violence. Military planners already worry that if security continues to improve, many of the 2 million Iraqis who fled the country will return. Those who left are overwhelmingly Sunni, and many of their old houses are occupied by Shiites. How would the Shiite-dominated Iraqi army and police handle the likely friction? “Displaced people is a major flashpoint” to worry about in 2008, said Fetter.
Indeed, although if the people Yon spoke to are representative, it won’t be in the Dora neighborhood. The takeaway line: “Real Muslims here are quick to say that al Qaeda members are not true Muslims.”