The latest from Prime Minister Maliki: "We say in full confidence that we are able, God willing, to take the responsibility completely in running the security file if the international forces withdraw at any time they want."

That takes the cake for bravado, but of course Maliki and his allies, the Shia religious bloc led by Dawa and SCIRI (SIIC), would simply turn to Iran for help. And they'd get it. Meanwhile, there's more from one of Maliki's top aides, Hassan al-Suneid, who lashed out against the U.S. strategy of working with Sunni tribal militia:

Al-Suneid, a Shiite lawmaker close to al-Maliki, bristled at the pressure. He called Thursday's report "objective," but added, "this bothers us a lot that the situation looks as if it is an experiment in an American laboratory (judging) whether we succeed or fail."

He also told The Associated Press that al-Maliki has problems with the top U.S. commander Gen. David Petraeus, who works along a "purely American vision."

He criticized U.S. overtures to Sunni groups in Anbar and Diyala, encouraging former insurgents to join the fight against al-Qaida in Iraq. "These are gangs of killers," he said.

I guess Suneid prefers hi s own gangs of killers, unsurprisngly, to theirs. But it is a little surprising that government in Iraq is getting so prickly about its chief patron, since the kinds of outbursts that Maliki is making can only accelerate pressure for U.S. withdrawal.

Meanwhile, as Wayne White suggests, there are drawbacks but possible opportunities in the emerging U.S.-Sunni alliance:

As welcome as is this turn of events may be, the cooperation of even many battle-hardened insurgents with US forces against al-Qaeda and other terrorists is most likely a rather fragile—and temporary—marriage of convenience.

Iraqi Shi’a are very conscious of something the US must not overlook: if and when al-Qaeda in Iraq and its ilk have been crushed, those same Sunni Arabs who helped accomplish this might well turn against their American occupiers and the Iraqi central government, the next two parties on their long-standing hit list.

And White adds:

The real opportunity for improving US relations with Iraq’s Sunni Arabs relates to withdrawal. A timely US withdrawal, coupled with assurances that the US does not intend to retain bases in Iraq, would provide a chance for a far more peaceful disengagement from what were previously the most violent regions of the country.

There is a really important Post article today interviewing a resistance leader, supposedly the head of the Omar Brigade that was founded by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who sat down with a Post reporter, Joshua Parltow. He's a former member of the Saddam Fedayeen, but not a member of Al Qaeda. The whole story is filled with interesting nuance. He says his forces don't kill random Shia, like Al Qaeda does, but they do kill lots of Shia militia types. Some quotes:

Since the beginning of the occupation until now, I have participated in killing many of the militia members, I say it frankly. .. It's jhard to count [how many]. ...

I personally don't have a hatred of the American people, and I respect American civilization. They have participated in the progress of all the nations of the world. They invented computers. Such people should be respected. But [Shia] who are crying over someone who died 1,400 years ago, these should be eliminated, to clear the society of them, because they are simply trash. ...

The real enemy for the resistance is Iran and those working for Iran. Because Iran has a feud which goes back thousands of years with the people of Iraq and the government of Iraq. ... The problem is that the Americans have a relationship with the slaves [of Iran]: Dawa, Badr Organization, the Mahdi Army are slaves to Iran.

Al Qaeda is more strict than the others in their way of thinking, in terms of applying religious rituals and behavior, and also the way of working. Al-Qaeda, for example, kills every Shiite, while the other factions kill only the Iranian spies or those who are members of militias. ...

Asked what the United States ought to do, he said:

Lift the barriers. Move the checkpoints. Build a hospital. And release the detainees from the area. And you will witness very quickly a tangible difference. The hatred and the strikes against the Americans will be wiped out or greatly reduced. The solution is political, not military. And then the American soldiers will be able to walk down the streets without their protective vests.