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Looks at politics and government in Iraq as of July 11, 2005. Details of the June, 2004 agreement in which the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) disbanded nine prominent militia groups; Role of CPA official Terry Kelly in the management of the disbandment; View that the year following the disbandment agreement has returned power to the militias; Allegations that the militias have been responsible for assassinations and other acts of political violence; Outcome of U.S. efforts toward disbanding powerful militias since the Kelly agreement; Discussion of the process of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) of militias within the task of postwar reconstruction phase of the Iraq War.

The article reports that Iraqi authorities are using a combination of strong-arm tactics and financial persuasion to prevent anti-government protests from escalating. According to the article, protests spread across major cities led by people who demand reforms, improved services and an end to corruption. Meanwhile, Iraqi security and intelligence agencies are trying to stop protest organizers, particularly those who are using the Internet in an effort to organize another mass protest.

The article presents the editors' favorable view of the report General David Petraeus gave to the U.S. Congress on the progress of the war in Iraq. They say the Democrats were hoping the report would further undermine support for the war, whereas they see it as having been persuasive and helpful to the war effort.