Iraq bombings show progress, challenges

Iraqi municipal workers begin the task of clearing up the debris of several restaurants following a twin bombing when a car first detonated in the Sunni district of Adhamiyah in Baghdad, followed by a suicide bomber on November 10, 2008. (Photo credit should read KHALIL AL-MURSHIDI/AFP/Getty Images)

Today's bombings in Iraq which left dozens dead is a stark and horrible reminder that, while violence has dropped significantly there as a result of the U.S. military's surge, that country is still very dangerous.

It's a measure of progress that today's blasts, which killed at least 31 people in Baghdad and more elsewhere, according to the Associated Press, represented the worst day of violence since June. Less than two years ago such a time gap in major attacks was unheard of.

But it's also true that the continuing violence indicates how difficult the challenge will be for President-elect Barack Obama.

He has promised to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by early 2010. But if removing U.S. forces were to result in increased violence and instability, that decision could result in criticism from not just Republicans who would say "I told you so" but foreign allies too, especially those in the region who would face the greatest risk from an increasingly unstable Iraq.