As regime falls, Iraqis rush to fill power vacuum

Inside a ramshackle building on a former Iraqi Army base, a motley group of soldiers bang out rhythms on shoe boxes and dance on top of old military cots. They are singing in Arabic and wearing newly issued fatigues bearing the initials FIF, or Free Iraqi Fighters.

The man with the most to celebrate here, Ahmed Chalabi, is clad in a black T-shirt and surrounded by a small entourage of bodyguards. The US airlift that brought the leader of the Iraqi National Congress and nearly 700 FIFs to this base on Sunday was a political rescue of sorts, making him the first major Iraqi opposition leader on the ground in US-controlled southern Iraq.

Mr. Chalabi, who has not lived in Iraq since 1958, is at the forefront of the fractured Iraqi opposition; his Pentagon and congressional connections mean he is well-positioned to capitalize on Saddam Hussein's collapse. But while Chalabi stakes out territory in Iraq's emerging new order, his colleagues - and rivals - will be doing the same, scrambling to act as power brokers between local interests and the United States.

Two Kurdish parties enjoy a working relationship with the US government, strengthened in recent weeks by military cooperation with American forces. The Amman and London-based Iraqi National Accord has CIA connections and a membership largely made up of defectors from Mr. Hussein's military and security services.

The Iran-based Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) boasts considerable support among the Shiites of the south, and claims 10,000 fighters within the ranks of its Badr Brigade.

Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, SCIRI's leader, has decided to return to Iraq from his exile in Iran. His spokesman said this week that Mr. Hakim had not yet decided when he would go.

Local support will be one key to consolidating influence. On his first day here, Chalabi threw a big tent lunch with leaders of the Algeezi tribe, followed by private talks with the elders.

"One of the things they said is that they were very happy to see Iraqis with the US forces," says Zaab Sethna, a member of the INC and Chalabi's spokesman.

Some of the FIF have been deployed as interpreters and liaisons with US civil affairs forces. These units look out for the needs of local leaders and attempt to build a climate of trust for the coming aid agencies and transitional government.

Chalabi has also been taking requests for assistance from locals. His spokesman explains the practice as "a traditional Iraqi thing," a mark of leadership and prestige. Chalabi has been passing the requests on to the US civil affairs forces.

The FIF may soon put Chalabi in a better position to wield some clout in the region. Public relations will be a big aspect of their mission, as they will be deployed to man checkpoints and ferret out lingering Baath leaders.

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