To stem the bloodshed, change the treatment

In the wake of the growing Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal, an Arab friend wrote to me from Kuwait: "It seems that the Americans have swallowed a razor in Iraq." Despite the abhorrent slaughter of American hostage Nicholas Berg in Iraq, this is a razor that can easily tear apart the Bush Administration from within, and make the United States - and for that matter two of its staunchest allies, Britain and Australia - hemorrhage in the Middle East for a long time to come. The only option left open to the Administration and its allies is to adopt a rapid exit strategy that will enable the United Nations to take over the Iraqi transition, with the support of a security force composed of Arab League, Iranian and NATO troops under UN command.