Opinion (William M. Arkin): Sunni rule again in Iraq?

Above: A Sunni 'former insurgent' conducts a patrol with U.S. forces in the Ameriyah neighborhood of Baghdad in mid-August.

President Bush's surprise eight-hour visit to Iraq yesterday will be read by many Iraqis, and by many others in the Islamic world, as part of a great conspiracy. The conspiracy's goal? To create an American-Sunni alliance, restore the Sunni minority to power and suppress the Shiite majority.

No one doubts that the intended audience of Bush's photo op was Congress and the American public. But, as has been typical of Washington's initiatives in Iraq from Day One, perceptions of the visit -- by the Iraqi people and by our potential adversaries -- was ignored.

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