Fallujah pullout sending mixed policy messages

Washington Post via Houston Chronicle ^ | May 1, 2004, 12:41AM | GLENN KESSLER and BRADLEY GRAHAM

[Anti-Bubba182]

WASHINGTON -- Facing a deadline of just two months before returning some political power to Iraqis, the Bush administration is squeezed between quelling the insurgency and searching for any idea that reduces the chances of a violent confrontation. But it's uncertain whether some of its new tactics will resolve problems quickly enough for the administration's self-imposed timetable.

The decision to turn to former Iraqi army generals to help regain control of Fallujah, for instance, took place under confusing circumstances, with military officials in Iraq announcing terms that officials in Washington had yet to review. It also came against the backdrop of rising Iraqi anger at the U.S.-led occupation and televised images of possible psychological and sexual abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers.

To some analysts, the administration left the impression it was grasping at alternatives, with little sense of how this new tactic fit into the larger strategy or of its possible pitfalls. In much of the world, the agreement was first described as a retreat by Americans in the face of stubborn resistance by insurgent forces.

The balancing act will only get harder, analysts said, even after an interim Iraqi government takes charge and prepares for elections.....< snip >

.....The decision to pull U.S. Marines back from Fallujah and allow former Iraqi officers to take the lead represents a calculated risk that officers once loyal to Saddam Hussein could prove useful partners in establishing a new Iraqi order, officials said.

U.S. authorities insisted the Marines were not retreating and would maintain command over the new Iraqi force. They also stressed that U.S. forces would retain the right to patrol Fallujah and possibly mount an offensive against foreign fighters taking refuge in the city....."

[Anti-Bubba182]

This has a chance of blowing up in our faces, but for Fallujah the Iraqi General may be the right move, because he is one of them and may be acceptable to the people in this Bathist stronghold.

This is a different solution than taking what was the Debathified Iraqi Security Force and putting it in there.

I have a feeling this former Republican Guard General has a very good idea of what Marine and supporting units can do in full attack and he may try to curb violence with that realization.

[Nick Danger]

The problem I have with all of this reporting is that none of it can be trusted anymore.

Virtually every news article in the mainstream press these days is a highly selective recitation of whichever facts can best be arranged so as to produce a slam on the Bush Administration.

There is zero doubt in my mind that these reporters withheld material facts from this article because they would weaken the "bumbling, desperate" hypothesis that is today's artful slam.

It's very frustrating to have the media be so damned partisan all the time. Everything has to be a crusade with them, to defeat Republicans and help Democrats. All I ever wanted from these people was the best recitation of the facts that they could come up with. But that is not available anymore. It's either ax-grinding by partisan reporters, or it's nothing at all. This sucks.

[Anti-Bubba182]

All you can do is learn which way the individual media sources
bias goes and filter from there. I doubt if there was ever a time when that was not the case.

[Texasforever]

I see this as the ONLY way to "win the peace". Yes we can level towns and kill bad guys from sun-up to sun-down BUT it is US doing it and as long as it is just US then we are going to be there for a long long time. It is past time for Iraqis to take a stand and carry their weight. Yes this guy is a former Saddam Army general. However Patton resisted Ike's orders for "De-Nazification" simply because the former Nazis were the only ones able to work with the allies during the occupation. This appears to be one of the top Saddam Generals that the USA was in contact with prior to the invasion and I have seen nothing to suggest that he was involved in action against us.

[dasboot]

The Syrian and Iranian borders (and just about every other one) are leaky, and the military action is appearing weak-kneed. The kick-'em-while-they're down jihhadists are streaming into Iraq, no? Strategery?

Basically, we gotta kill as many as are willing to come. If the door is ajar, and the watchman on the toilet, that's their invitation. C'mon down.

I don't think GW is in this for an election or money or anything less than saving the world from religiously-motivated pirates and murderers. If a quagmire it must appear to be, then so be it. There's important work afoot, and it's more important than 'Democratic Iraq' or any of the other boilerplate.

[Robert_Paulson2]

The problem I have with all of this reporting is that none of it can be trusted anymore.

---

yup.
obviously we are NOT going to KNOW what is really going on.. . and that is PART of the Gig for this venue.

the data is incomplete.
the military is not sharing everything, nor should they.
the spinners are trying to spin.
the first clue was the redefinition of "TRUCE" that involved optional use of AC 130 gunships... TRUCE MY ARSE.

disinformation used in a time of war.
I guess I just have to believe that whatever is being passed for "human consumption" regardig this war and this "TRUCE" in fallujah is part of our ongoing work in the regaion.

And folks who really KNOW what is going on, are busy distracting us with their continual recital of war strategy by SunTzu.

[meenie]

Fallujans regained their sovereignty early. This is probably the best outcome possible under the circumstances. This is probably the best solution for the rest of Iraq. It is probably the only thing that will save the United States from an extended period of conflict. The Kurds have shown their ability to govern themselves. The rest of Iraq is probably just as capable. We won't be able to establish a government that realizes our expectations, but that is part of democracy, too. We have unwittingly united the Sunni and Shia factions into a common bond which is good for the future of the country. All is not lost, there will be some good attained.

[MN_Mike]

Me kinda thinks the good General knows what the hell he is doing. Besides that former Saddam guy is plenty ugly, that should count for something, don't ya think?

These 1,000 or so Iraqi military types are on a short leash with stiff accountabilities -- in the end, the same outcome: pacification of Fallujah.

Leave it to the NYT to call this a "last ditch effort" more boohooing "quagmire" crap.

[dawn53]

I agree, how many times did this story "morph" from one version to another.

However, my husband, who is no military strategists (LOL), but has a pretty good grasp of human nature has been saying that we need to find a "strong man" in Fallujah that will cooperate with us in order to quell the situation.

Of course, we could flatten the place, but our objective is to restore order and eventually self rule, we don't want to be long time occupiers to a resistent and resentful population.