The Iraqi government needs to get serious

…about their security. They just released the two Iranian operatives against the United States’ wishes.

Two senior Iranian operatives who were detained by U.S. forces in Iraq and were strongly suspected of planning attacks against American military forces and Iraqi targets were expelled to Iran on Friday, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials.

The decision to free the men was made by the Iraqi government and has angered U.S. military officials who say the operatives were seeking to foment instability here.

“These are really serious people,” said one U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “They were the target of a very focused raid based on intelligence, and it would be hard for one to believe that their activities weren’t endorsed by the Iranian government. It’s a situation that is obviously troubling.”

I don’t believe that troop withdrawal is the right move, but the Dems may have a point in that the Iraqi government needs to take security much, much, more seriously. They’ve been awfully cavalier with outside agitators and internal sects.

The new Bush strategy won’t mean an awful lot as long as the Iraqi government is this uncooperative.