Casualty balance sheet

Washington Times ^ | 12/04/03 | Jack Kelly

[kattracks]

The outcome of the first reported battle since the end of major combat operations in Iraq suggests victory may be closer than most Americans dare to hope.

Iraqis wearing the black garb of the Fedayeen Saddam ambushed two convoys carrying cash to banks in Samarra, a small town in the Sunni Triangle about 60 miles northwest of Baghdad. The attacks were well planned and coordinated. The attackers were brave. The attackers died like flies.

[tiki]

I think he's right on.

[xzins]

Outstanding article that should be seen as "Good News: We're easily winning on the ground in Iraq."

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Thank you!
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The outcome of the first reported battle since the end of major combat operations in Iraq suggests victory may be closer than most Americans dare to hope.--

The guerrillas need to kill at least 50 members of the security forces for each casualty they take, just to stay even. But it's going the other way.

President Bush reportedly has been told that since Operation Iron Hammer began a month ago, nearly 1,100 Iraqi guerrillas have been captured or killed. If this is true, then we've inflicted 15 casualties on the guerrillas for each death we've suffered. That is not an exchange rate the enemy can sustain for long.

The Viet Cong were able to take horrendous casualties and keep on fighting mostly because of an endless supply of reinforcements from North Vietnam.

There is no North Vietnam to back up Saddam, and the Ba'athist remnant is much less popular among Iraqis than the Viet Cong were among the Vietnamese.

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Jack Kelly's analysis of the Samarra attacks.

We're winning.

[mark502inf]

We've captured several prisoners over the past few weeks. Be interesting to find out when they became fighters, how there were recruited, why they joined up, what their particular element is doing to gain or maintain its personnel strength. Without that type info it is hard to project how close we really are to defeating the guerillas.

[PogySailor]

Martin Sieff of UPI thinks it was a premature escalation based on rising confidence. "The attacks took place in a predominantly Sunni city and their scale reflects the confidence and rapid learning curve of the guerrillas," Mr. Sieff wrote. "After inflicting about 80 dead on U.S. forces in November, they felt confident enough to attempt a far more ambitious kind of operation."

It is also likely they thought if they could make a major attack succeed, their allies in the media would rachet up the calls for a U.S. withdrawl.

[windchime]

Bump!

[McGavin999]

I like the way those numbers look. It's also going to make these terrorists think twice about attacking our guys. Sooner or later these hold outs are going to start drifting back to their villages and take up their lives as farmers or whatever they can find to make a living.

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[Valin]

Something that I've been wondering about for a couple of weeks now.. Does anyone have a number for the number of enemies that we've killed/captured since the "end of major combat operations"?

Reason, we all keep seeing the number of ours guys killed (in the same time frame) and I think it would be...interesting to see just how many bad guys have gone to collect their 72 virgins.

[blackie]

Jack Kelly's analysis of the Samarra attacks ~ We're Winning ~ Bump!

[wayoverontheright]

Iraqis wearing the black garb of the Fedayeen Saddam ambushed two convoys carrying cash to banks in Samarra, a small town in the Sunni Triangle about 60 miles northwest of Baghdad.

Not only have they changed TACTICS, from what I agree is born of desperation, but this may have been an attempted robbery, which would indicate the money's running out.

Very encouraging.......unless you're a Democrat.

[PhilDragoo]

"Coalition firepower overwhelmed the attackers," Master Sgt. Robert Cargie of the 4th Infantry Division told the New York Times.

Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.