Irak 110

Kunt u zich nog herinneren hoe de Amerikaanse president als een getrainde aap in een pilotenpakje uit zijn gevechtsbommenwerper klom en met een iets te stoere tred naar de microfoons toe waggelde om de wereld te melden dat in Irak de 'mission accomplished' was? Welnu, wij zijn drie jaar en meer dan 650.000 Iraakse burgerdoden verder en nog steeds komen ook Amerikaanse militairen om het leven in Irak. De vraag is inmiddels hoe de VS zo snel mogelijk uit dit moeras kan wegkomen.

De New York Times bericht:

'Iraqi Realities Undermine the Pentagon’s Predictions

BAGHDAD, Oct. 24 — In trying to build support for the American strategy in Iraq, Gen. George W. Casey Jr. said Tuesday that the Iraqi military could be expected to take over the primary responsibility for securing the country within 12 to 18 months.
But that laudable goal seems far removed from the violence-plagued streets of Iraq’s capital, where American forces have taken the lead in trying to protect the city and American soldiers substantially outnumber Iraqi ones.
Given the rise in sectarian killings, a Sunni-based insurgency that appears to be as potent as ever and an Iraqi security establishment that continues to have difficulties deploying sufficient numbers of motivated and proficient forces in Baghdad, General Casey’s target seems to be an increasingly heroic assumption.
On paper, Iraq has substantial security forces. The Pentagon noted in an August report to Congress that Iraq had more than 277,000 troops and police officers, including some 115,000 army combat soldiers.
But those figures, which have often been cited at Pentagon news conferences as an indicator of progress and a potential exit strategy for American troops, paint a distorted picture. When the deep-seated reluctance of many soldiers to serve outside their home regions, leaves of absence and AWOL rates are taken into account, only a portion of the Iraqi Army is readily available for duty in Baghdad and other hot spots.'

Lees verder: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/25/world/middleeast/25assess.html?ex=1319428800&en=b6b1a5f54e71eb93&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss