REALPOLITIK: David Pratt

REMEMBER the war in Iraq? There was a time when it was rarely out of the headlines. Almost daily, turning on the radio or television news meant being subjected to the latest barrage of graphic images of suicide bombings or sectarian killings. So intense were hostilities at their height in Iraq, that Afghanistan was frequently relegated to the level of a military sideshow in the "war on terror" and often dubbed the "forgotten war".

How things have changed, and the roles reversed, in the space of the last year or so. Today, the stories coming out of Afghanistan are invariably bleak as civilians and coalition forces alike bear the brunt of a regenerated Taliban onslaught. Iraq, meanwhile, no longer seems quite so newsworthy, though arguably the country is going through one of the most positive periods of political change since the war there began.

In Iraq's case at least, the cameras have all but moved on, preoccupied now with gathering pictures from Helmand and elsewhere in Afghanistan, where battles with the Taliban have been most frequent and intense.

Just as so much of our news media has failed to stay with the Iraq story as it enters a complex and crucial political phase, so too in Afghanistan the emphasis almost always is on the fighting rather than explaining the political, tribal, ethnic and regional roots from which much of the current instability springs.

As a reporter I feel a certain disquiet about the way news coverage of Iraq has suddenly diminished. Our failure to follow and comment on Iraq's progress as much as we did on its destruction is a dereliction of journalistic duty.

Likewise, too, in the alternative and "indy" press, those commentators and bloggers who wrote endlessly condemning the conflict seem to have fallen noticeably quiet of late as Iraq begins to haul itself out from beneath the ashes of war.

Just like their mainstream counterparts, the "indy" press seem to have rapidly run out of things to say when political progress on the ground confounds their long-held view that things could never get better in Iraq because of the occupation.

Now don't misunderstand me. As someone who has been against the war from the start and followed it on the ground, I'm under no illusions about how far Iraq has to go before there is real security for its people and any reconciliation process leads to a solid peace.

Only two months ago, when I was last in Baghdad, Sadr City was still the scene of terrible fighting and Iraqi and coalition troops alike were still being blown to pieces by rockets and suicide bombers. But the signs have been good of late. Iraq's citizens are fed up with sectarianism and extremism, the violence has been substantially contained, foreign diplomats are returning to Baghdad and high oil prices are feeding the state treasury.

As little as a year ago it would have taken a lot to convince anyone that US troops would be in a position to hand over control of Iraq's Anbar Province, once the heart of the Sunni Arab insurgency to the Iraqis. But tomorrow that is precisely what will happen.

Inside Baghdad too, Sunni strongholds such as Adhamiyah have all been transformed. Where once I watched local fighters battle the Americans, now they are challenging al-Qaeda. Many of these Sunni groups, such as the The Sons of Iraq or the Awakening Council, are actively policing local neighbourhoods. Admittedly these Awakening Councils were appointed, not elected, and are paid for by the Americans. What's more, they focus more on security than governance.

However, now that security is improving it is time to take the next step. To that end, an upcoming provincial council election is another move forward in boosting the representation of Iraq's once-powerful Sunni Arab minority. Welcome news, too, is that Iraq's influential Shia cleric, Moqtada al-Sadr, has indefinitely extended a ceasefire being observed by members of his Mehdi Army militia.

Tensions persist, of course, and American money will certainly dry up as the US's debt climbs to a record $9.6 trillion. Iraqis will then be expected to cough up to pay for local projects, making it even more important for all sections of the community to be fairly represented at both local and national level.

Across Iraq difficulties remain, but slowly the sound of gunfire and explosions is being replaced by the clamour of voices advocating political dialogue. As journalists we were once only too happy to cover the "bang bang", commenting on and condemning where appropriate.

We owe it now to the Iraqi people, and in the name of sound journalism, to give equal attention to their struggle for peace.