U.S. ambassador says insurgency 'trying to hang on'

BAGHDAD – The insurgency that bedeviled U.S. forces for years and killed thousands of Iraqis and Americans has withered to the point where it is “not even much of a challenge anymore” to Iraq's future, Ambassador Ryan Crocker said yesterday in an interview. Crocker, a veteran Mideast envoy who plans to wind up a nearly two-year tour here in January, would not rule out that Iraq could again descend into sectarian warfare in a contest for power and resources. But he expressed optimism that ordinary Iraqis, enjoying calm on their streets, will not allow it. “You talk to people (Iraqis), and they just say, 'Never again. We almost destroyed ourselves,' ” he said. “There is almost a kind of embarrassment over it: 'How could we Iraqis do that?' ” His characterization of the state of the insurgency was striking, given its central... [read full story]