Portrait of "victory"?

A June 6 memo produced by the staff of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and leaked to the Washington Post offers snapshots of the grim and terrifying life led by local Iraqis.

"Islamist and/or militia groups" have begun to exercise effective control over much of Baghdad, the memo reports. "Harassment over proper dress and habits has been increasingly pervasive," with female Iraqi embassy employees being hounded to wear veils, avoid driving alone, and even to stop using cellphones. The threats and harassment are not directed only at women, since "it is now dangerous for men to wear shorts in public," or "to allow their children to play outside in shorts. People who wear jeans in public have come under attack."

Iraqis who are identified as embassy employees or are employed within the "Green Zone"--the secure area inhabited by U.S. diplomatic and military leadership--could face "a death sentence" or be targeted for kidnapping. "We cannot call employees on weekends or holidays without blowing their 'cover,'" complains the memo, which also reports that "we have begun shredding documents printed out that show local staff surnames."

Elsewhere in "liberated" Iraq, inter-communal violence is raging, with bloody results. One Arab-language newspaper editor "told us he is preparing an extensive survey of ethnic cleansing, which he said is taking place in almost every Iraqi province, as political parties and their militias are seemingly engaged in tit-for-tat reprisals all over Iraq."