It happened on Thanksgiving Day 2008 - despite numerous protests in parliament and on the streets, Iraq’s elected representatives approved a deal that would allow US troops to stay put for three more years. The Status of Forces Agreement [SOFA] appears not to threaten Iraqi sovereignty, although that will all depend on its implementation. Personally, the thought of American soldiers in Iraq for another three years is far from ideal, however, this appears to be what the people want (or so the government thinks). We’ll find out for sure – lawmakers gave in to Sunni demands and agreed to hold a referendum in the middle of 2009 even though the agreement goes into effect January 1st.

There’s no good reason to think that underlying problems are improving though. Political reconciliation is still a long shot. While there may be some good news, there is still cause for concern: too many division and too much corruption for any real progress. What to do with the Awakening Councils and Maliki’s new ‘Support Councils’? Groups like the Mahdi Army may be down for the count, but if they don’t get back up, others will take their place. One example of the other administrative and logistical challenges is the overcrowding in Iraqi prisons. The SOFA will only exacerbate that problem.

Of course, the violence continues, even though it has subsided considerably. At least 30 innocent Iraqis were killed  last week. While that may be less than usual, it is still too many.

Nov 21: Not a particularly bloody day, although there were two roadside bombs that killed three people and wounded almost 20 more. Moqtada Al Sadr’s supporters took to the streets to protest against the SOFA. The most significant news of the day came from Iraq’s presidential council demanding the suspension of Maliki’s Support Councils.

Nov 22: Another relatively peaceful day – only one reported murder. The US freed an innocent Iranian man they had arrested a few days earlier. And while the Minster of Defense was warning that pirates would set their sites on Iraq after a US withdrawal, there was some good news for women in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Nov 23: No deaths reported, but several people were injured in various incidents around the country. A different story for canines – over 200 were killed in the opening day of a campaign to cull packs of wild dogs; there are over a thousand in Baghdad. Under Saddam, Iraqis did this regularly, but that all stopped when the dog-loving Americans took over. Speaking of Saddam and dogs, two of his former officials are facing another trial. How big of a farce will it be this time around? Over in Damascus, US officials stood alone in accusing Syria of knowingly sheltering militants fighting in Iraq.

Nov 24: At least 20 people were killed in a handful of attacks around the county, the worst of which killed 13 female employees at the Ministry of Trade. Meanwhile, a prominent MP was allowed to keep his parliamentary immunity – some people in the government wanted to strip him of it for a visit to Israel, a state with which the Iraqi government has no diplomatic ties. A touch of good news came out of Irbil where the federal government and Kurdish officials made small advances in resolving disputed oil contracts. But in Baghdad, the Kurdish Regional Government was asked to keep the federal government informed of all arms purchases…

Nov 25: No reported deaths, but several Iraqis were wounded in separate attacks. On the other hand, two US servicemen were shot by an Iraqi in army uniform.

Nov 26: Two civilians were killed and ten others wounded by a roadside bomb in Baghdad. There were two others attacks on Iraqi policemen that left several wounded. Iraqi security forces are preferred targets among those wreaking havoc. Some relatively good news: 18 (female) would be suicide bombers reportedly turned themselves in.

Nov 27: Give thanks. After much debate and delay, Iraq’s parliament finally approved the SOFA - 149 out of 198 representatives voted in favor of it. All that overshadowed the four people killed and dozens others wounded in attacks across the country. Not much fuss was made of the Japanese decision to withdraw. An American who served in Iraq has also had enough – he filed for asylum in Germany. There was a little more good news on the oil front as well.