A few days ahead of the security handover of Anbar, a Sunni province that once was once Iraq's most dangerous, some Iraqis have voiced their concerns over their national security forces' ability to handle the situation on their own, with others expressing their happiness about the return of self-governance.Speaking to Aswat al-Iraq-Voices of Iraq- (VOI), Colonel Dawoud al-Maree, a spokesman for Falluja police, said that Iraqi forces are ready to receive the security responsibilities from the Multi-National Force (MNF), ruling out any deficiencies in military equipment.
"The shortage of police personnel is not a shortcoming that hinders the security handover," the colonel said.
On Friday, the U.S. army said that the ceremonies to hand Anbar to Iraqi control, which was scheduled to take place on Saturday, were indefinitely put off due to expected bad weather conditions in the Sunni province.
The colonel explained that the fall in violence had paved the way for the security transfer of the province, arguing that incidents of sporadic violence will not affect the work of Iraqi police personnel.
Expressing a different view on the issue, Faris Na'em al-Alwani, a 29-year-old owner of a mobile phone shop, said that Iraqi security forces lack experience and are in urgent need of the services of "senior officers from the former army."
"Army and police personnel can take over from the U.S.-led coalition if qualified officers from the former army took control," Alwani noted.
Alwani said that the security situation in Falluja has recently deteriorated, in reference to explosions and suicide bombings that ripped through several parts of Anbar city, which lies 45 km west of Iraqi capital Baghdad.
Colonel Khudeir Rasheed al-Fahdawi from Anbar police told VOI that Iraqi security forces have strengthened their capabilities throughout the past five years. "All areas in Anbar province that were once under al-Qaeda control are currently controlled by the Iraqi forces," the colonel added.
Ghayth Ahmed Muhammadi, a 33-year-old government employee and a resident of Anbar, said that Iraqi officers are torn between their loyalty to their parties and their country. The struggle over power has driven the city to the verge of explosion, Muhammadi said, noting that local residents are the major victims of political instability.
A few residents of the province praised what they described as the "relative success" of Sahwa (Awakening) councils in restoring stability and driving al-Qaeda operatives from the province.
The Sahwa councils were set up in a number of Iraqi provinces such as Anbar, Diala, Ninewa, and Salah al-Din with the aim of bolstering political and local tribal powers to fight armed groups, particularly al-Qaeda network, in those areas. These councils are usually led by tribal chiefs or notables in the provinces.
Anbar should have been the 10th out of Iraq's 18 provinces to receive security responsibilities since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and the first Sunni province to be handed to Iraqi control.
Thamir Mustafa al-Aani, a government employee, said: "The Iraqi police have done a lot to the provinceÂ…and have managed to purge many areas of al-Qaeda fighters." "Falluja police are able to impose security in the province," al-Aani, 37, said.
Linking domestic stability to Iraq's neighboring countries, Sheikh Abu Muhammad, an Aameriya al-Falluja Sahwa council leader, said: "It is not possible to tell whether the Iraqi police and army are fully prepared to take over security responsibilities. Anbar is a large province and has borders with three countries." The tribal leader accused foreign bodies of attempting to destabilize security in the country, calling on Iraq's neighbors to abide by their commitments to Iraq.