Above: Two American soldiers patrolling Baghdad

Three American soldiers were the latest victims of recent attacks in Southern Iraq. The soldiers, who were at the Combat Outpost Adder near Nasiriya, were killed from a barrage of rockets that peppered their small base early morning Wednesday. Two other soldiers and a civilian were wounded in the attack. This brings the death toll to 12 in 3 days.

One American soldier died by a roadside bomb in his patrol near Diwaniya yesterday; eight died in a pair of bomb attacks the day before: three in Diyala and five in Central Baghdad.

According to the Associated Press, the total death toll of American soldiers in Iraq is now at 4,000.

The recent increase in attacks are believed to have been started by a call from Iraqi tribal leaders, former politicians and intellectuals for United Nations control in the region. The call for UN support will prove to be helpful in the cause of US troop reduction and their eventual departure from the country. In my opinion, these recent attacks are a show of force from the terrorists: to instill fear that the region is not safe for US and moreover UN forces.

“We believe that the only opportunity left for Iraq to be saved from a dark, but not inevitable future, is to engage the international community represented by the United Nations,” said the letter addressed to UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon in Cairo. “Such a step will allow the American troops to leave and the occupation to be brought to its end.”

The letter made in the collective efforts of Iraqis under the leadership of Adeeb al-Jadir, Ahmed Al-Haboubi and Nouri Abdel Razak Hussein. These politicians were overthrown by Saddam Hussein in 1968. in 2003, when the Americans arrived, they were part of the liberal anti-regime opposition.

The UN pulled out in August of 2003 when a suicide attack targeting their group killed civilians and one of the UN representatives.

“Violence has increased dramatically over the past few days,” said a 33 year old father and civilian named Haitham Ismael of Western Baghdad.

Most civilians in Iraq have been living a comparatively “peaceful” life given the circumstances of the recent years. These recent attacks have thrown their hopes for a better situation out the window.

The people of Iraq are living in fear again. Memories of violence from a year ago are coming back in true form. And the promise of American troops leaving the region is not helping to calm their senses.

Many believe that their own government cannot control even the Shiite or Sunni militants, how much more the al Qaeda.

“I think militant groups, whether Shiite or Sunni, will not disappear,” said a 55 year old father and teacher named Naji Hassan Yassin, a Sunni. “They do this (disappear) only when there are troops on the street. But they will return when they leave. How long can we keep all these American troops on the ground?”

“I’m 100 percent certain that if the U.S. forces leave now, the situation will become very explosive,” said the teacher. He is currently residing in Amariyah with his family of three children. He fears that the al Qaeda will return to his hometown and once again take control of their lives.