Struggling in Iraq, while trying to keep an overwhelmed occupation alive against mass opposition and public protests, the US has been working hard to forge new alliances against the Sunni resistance and the Shiite Mahdi Army of Moqtada al-Sadr.

So far we’ve seen two different fronts in the diplomatic push back. There has been some success in organizing Sunnis against al-Qaeda in Iraq.

IraqSlogger is reporting this morning on a story in the Arabic language Al-Hayatt paper:

Al-Hayat announced that a meeting in an unnamed Arab state (the reporter was Maysar al-Shimmari, al-Hayat’s correspondent in Jedda, Saudi Arabia) joined nine factions of the Iraqi “Islamic and national resistance” in an alliance against the “Islamic State” and its project.

The meeting’s “coordinator” told al-Hayat that four additional factions could not travel to the designated meeting location, but have approved the decisions of the conferees and will sign the joint statement at a later date.

The “Islamic State” refers to a newly announced project (and goal) of al-Qaeda named the “Islamic State of Iraq.”

While this meeting can be significant because it projects new opposition to al-Qaeda it would be unwise to think of it as a new alliance for the US as the same article notes

In a phone interview following the meeting, a participant told al-Hayat that “the nine factions do not have foreign links, and their sole objective is resisting the occupation.” He added that the groups represent the different constituents of Iraq: Shi'as, Kurds and Sunnis.

The meeting’s “coordinator” also told al-Hayat that the unification of the factions of the “Islamic and national resistance” (the name indicates a recognition of non-religious parties who participate in fighting the US forces) was prompted by the project of the “Islamic State,” which the factions oppose.

On a second front, Time reported last December that a number of tribes in Anbar province are uniting against al-Qaeda in a loose agreement with the occupying US forces.

Under the apparent leadership of Sheik Abdel Sittar Baziya, head of the Abu Risha tribe and a founder of the movement the Sahawat Al Anbar, or Awakening Council, about 40 other tribal leaders have created an alliance pledged to fighting al-Qaeda in Al Anbar province. Sunnis in Anbar are creating a more united front and pledging to support American forces in the province.

COL Sean MacFarland, commander of US forces in Ramadi, was quite impressed with Sheik Sittar’s influence.

MacFarland understood immediately the sway Sheik Abdul Sittar holds in Ramadi when he met the tribal leader for the first time in August. "The walls were just lined with guys in the sheik robes," MacFarland says, describing the scene at Sittar's compound when he arrived for a formal meeting with the sheik shortly after assuming command in the area. Among Sittar's guests that day were local police officials who often fail to turn up for meetings called by the governor of Anbar Province, Maamoun Sami Rashid al-Awani. And there were other prominent local leaders sometimes difficult to corral. "I go down and see to the governor about once a week, and it's just me and the governor," says MacFarland, who views Sittar's ability to fill a room as a measure of the respect and authority he commands. "I go into sheik Sittar's house, and the place is packed."

COL MacFarland’s agreement with Sheik Sittar will find US troops building a series of police stations throughout Ramadi, and Sheik Sittar will provide recruits for the local security forces from tribal members loyal to him. So far it seems to be working. But this is an alliance of convenience, not of conviction. Sheik Sittar has a past history of brigandage, robbing travelers and stealing cars along highways in the Ramadi area after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s government. He has been arrested by the US occupation authorities three times, and in the past forged an alliance with al-Qaeda, but broke with them after he realized the dream of a theocratic caliphate was not what he approved of

.Some early signs of success in the slightly improved situation in Ramadi offer hope that the arrangement will continue to work for the foreseeable future. Sittar says the tribes would never turn against Americans, and he stresses again and again his commitment to building up the Iraqi government and deferring authority, eventually, to it. MacFarland puts much faith in Sittar and takes him at his word. But MacFarland also realizes how abruptly tribal politics can change directions, turning allies into enemies. "Tribes are like countries," he says. "They don't have friends, they have interests. Right now we're both to them. Down the road, would they fight us if we overstayed out welcome? They might very well."

Apparently COL MacFarland hasn’t been told that the “enduring bases” were not constructed at great expense to facilitate the American occupation’s leaving in the near future.