Exclusively in the new print issue of CounterPunch Iraqi Army
Losing Hold on North to Sunni and Kurdish Rebels as Troops
Desert  Is Iraq on the Cusp of Partition?   Soldiers are
deserting a beleaguered Iraqi army as it struggles to keep its
hold on the northern half of Iraq in the face of escalating
hostility from Sunni Arabs and Kurds who dominate in the region.
Around the oil city of Kirkuk Kurdish troops have advanced south
to take over military positions abandoned by the army, while in
Baghdad senior Iraqi politicians say that for the first
time there is talk of partitioning the country.  The current
crisis was sparked on 23 April when the Iraqi army attacked a
sit-in protest in the Sunni Arab town of Hawijah, killing at
least 50 people and injuring 110. Outraged Sunni Arab protesters
have since stepped up their demonstrations against the Shia-led
government. Demonstrators are increasingly protected by armed
men, some of whom are accused of dragging five military
intelligence soldiers in civilian clothes