LONDON - Britain's newspapers sounded a sombre note on Monday, tempering their enthusiasm for the handover of the southern province of Basra to Iraqi control, which they characterised as a retreat.
The formal takeover Sunday of security control in the province paves the way for Britain to sharply reduce its nearly 5,000-strong troop presence in Iraq, and makes Basra the ninth of Iraq's 18 provinces to be returned to local control by the US-led coalition since the 2003 invasion of the country.
Among the papers left unimpressed by Britain's progress in Basra was The Guardian, a left-of-centre daily, which said in its editorial that while "no one wants the mayhem in Iraq to continue a day longer ... it is worth pausing before accepting wholesale the notion that the country is turning a corner."
Characterising Basra as a "mess", the paper went on to say: "British forces have staged a retreat, but it is hard to conclude they have done anything other than extricate themselves from a tribal quagmire they do not fully understand."
The Times's Michael Evans struck a more neutral tone, noting that while "security has improved markedly, and investment is beginning to make a difference in Basra city ... it is a fragile peace, and despite glowing tributes at yesterday's handover ceremony, the fact is that no Briton, whether military or civilian, is now welcome in the city."
Evans wrote that though "there is no question ... that British troops in southern Iraq have played a significantly positive role," the hope in 2003 of "converting Iraq into a Western-style democracy that would be the model for the rest of the Middle East, was always naive and will never be achievable."
Among the country's national newspapers, only The Daily Telegraph sounded, on balance, positive regarding the handover, comparing it to the withdrawal of British military forces from Belfast in the troubled province of Northern Ireland.
"The calculation has been made in Basra, as it was in Belfast, that the disorder is now of a level where it can be dealt with by regular police -- although reinforcements might be brought swiftly back in the event of a breakdown," the right-wing paper's editorial read.
"This calculation is surely correct."
It went on to say that British troops "should feel satisfied as they shake the desert sands from their boots. They have done a fine job."
For the most part, however, the mood among Britain's newspapers was more negative, with the left-wing Independent writing that "for all the fine words and formality (of the handover ceremony), there was no concealing the uncomfortable and many-layered truth."
"This was not a victory, certainly not for the British, but not for the Iraqis either ... Of course, it suits both sides to maintain the illusion of good order.
"While welcoming the reduction in the British military presence in Iraq ... we would nonetheless note with regret and not a little chagrin the damage to which we have contributed."
Also chiming in was the right-wing Daily Mail, which wrote in its comment on the subject: "It is right that we leave Basra ... but let us not regard withdrawal as anything other than a forced retreat."
"Our achievements in Iraq have been scant, our failings many and the human cost grotesquely high on all sides."
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12/17/2007 02:21 GMT