Deborah Haynes blog on life in Iraq

It was a day of ceremony, pride and hope. Dancing Iraqi soldiers celebrated the country’s national army holiday with a new chant: “Where is terrorism today?”

In the central Karrada neighbourhood, an elderly man placed flowers into the gun barrels of three recruits. And then the suicide bomber struck.

Four policemen, three soldiers and four civilians were killed, and many more wounded. The death toll would have been much higher were it not for the three soldiers who threw themselves at the bomber when they became suspicious. They absorbed much of the blast.

Iraq timeline: five years of conflict

From accusations that the weapons of mass destruction dossier had been sexed-up to withdrawal of British troops from Basra

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Without their action, many more would have died. The three were last night being hailed as heroes. “Their selfless sacrifice is what saved a lot of lives,” Lieutenant Steven Stover, a US military spokesman, told The Times. “The tragedy is that he was still able to detonate himself.”

Despite repeated setbacks, disappointments and challenges, Iraq’s armed forces are gaining in confidence and ability as they ready themselves to take over more responsibility from US forces.

Yet the events of the weekend threw into stark relief both the progress made and the challenges remaining. The suicide blast also underlined that even though the US troop surge has helped to bring down violence, Baghdad’s streets remain extremely dangerous. Despite a 62 per cent drop in overall attacks since June, suicide bombings have risen in recent weeks.

The centrepiece of yesterday’s celebrations to mark the 87th anniversary of the national army — a ceremony inside Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone — was postponed without explanation. Smaller celebrations took place across the country, but they were a far cry from the huge party for the army held each year by Saddam Hussein.

It also emerged over the weekend that an Iraqi soldier on a joint operation with US troops turned his gun on the Americans, killing two decorated servicemen and injuring three as well as a civilian interpreter. The incident, on Boxing Day in northern Iraq, has fuelled concerns about the extent of militant infiltration in Iraqi ranks.

The plan for US forces to hand over control of security requires huge trust on both sides, as witnessed by The Times on a joint operation. In Yusifiyah, a town in an area south of Baghdad known as the Triangle of Death, US and Iraqi troops conduct joint air assaults, patrols and other operations without any problems.

Captain Michael Starz, who spends much of his time mentoring Iraqi troops, said that he had no concern about malign elements, noting that the Iraqi forces handled much of the security at a shared base where they all live on the outskirts of the town. “Literally they have our backs and we have their backs,” he said.

Asked what missions with the Iraqis were like, the 32-year-old captain from Pennsylvania said: “It is always a different adventure. It is a constant give and take on who is in charge.”

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