I have recently finished reading Wiser in Battle, by Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, former commander of coalition forces in Iraq. In it, Sanchez recounts his military career, with the vast majority devoted to his experiences in Iraq. In particular, he feels that he was made a scapegoat for the development of a coordinated insurgency in after the Iraqi regular forces were defeated, and for the prisoner abuses that occurred at Abu Ghraib.
The book is especially damning of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld for micromanagement of the military, for various political decisions that set up the military for failure, among other things. It is also damning of Ambassador Bremer, when he was head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, for failing to properly manage post-war Iraq and not attempting to achieve military, economic, and political tasks simultaneously. Furthermore, the way that Sanchez tells it, Bremer went out of his way to prevent progress from being made among the Iraqis and encourage reconciliation among the major tribal groups.
On one hand, it is a pretty convincing narrative. Each accusation is described in detail and with plenty of evidence. On the other hand, this is only one side of the story, and you would expect any author to paint themselves in the best light. To his credit, Sanchez does criticize himself for many decisions made in Iraq, and does not find himself completely faultless for the development of the insurgency or Abu Ghraib.
One of the more interesting points in the book was that Abu Ghraib was a blessing in disguise, because it pushed the treatment of prisoners to the forefront and forced similar institutions to abide by the Geneva Conventions.
Overall, it was a very interesting read (albeit dry in many sections). Particularly interesting are all of the details of the Abu Ghraib fiasco, most of which were not covered in the mainstream press.
<< Home