Regards, Ivan
Posted on 10/16/2004 4:29:58 PM PDT by MadIvan
THE US army is training more than 8,000 Iraqi troops to be at the forefront of the coalition’s threatened assault to wrest back control of the rebel stronghold of Falluja.
A division made up of three brigades of special counterinsurgency troops from the new Iraqi army is being prepared to join an attack on the city of 300,000 people. America believes its most wanted man in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the terrorist mastermind, is sheltering there.
“The key to a successful capture of Falluja and holding it secure is the use of well trained Iraqi forces. The people there will never accept anything else,” said a US military commander in Baghdad.
After last April’s assault, in which an estimated 600 civilians were killed, commanders believe Falluja’s inhabitants will not accept American troops for long, even if they have to take charge of the most dangerous fighting.
After a series of bombardments last week many inhabitants are preparing for a ground assault. Families are being taken to nearby cities.
An attempt to use a 620- strong battalion of the new Iraqi army last spring ended when Iraqi soldiers refused to fight. “They did not sign up to kill other Iraqis,” explained Major-General Paul Eaton, who oversaw their training.
Iraqi Intervention Force (IIF) battalions have since been created. Its members have been recruited in the full knowledge that they may be asked to fight fellow countrymen. A battalion of the IIF was used in Najaf in the summer and another last month to help to retake Samarra.
The IIF forces will not be up to full strength until December but Iyad Allawi, the Iraqi prime minister, wants the attack to begin as soon as possible. The priority is to clear hotspots west of Baghdad before elections in January. “If we take Falluja then the rest of the Sunni triangle will follow,” said the official.
Military sources played down speculation that last week’s airstrikes were the prelude to an attack. One said the idea was to “send a message” to the people of Falluja at the start of the holy month of Ramadan that they should “abandon their resistance”.
* Explosions damaged five churches in Baghdad yesterday in attacks aimed at Iraq’s small but deep-rooted Christian community. Two US soldiers died when two army helicopters crashed in the Iraqi capital and another four were killed in attacks elsewhere in the country.
Regards, Ivan
Ping!
Working together ~ Bump!
Iraqis actually fighting to take back their land from the Mad Mullahs and Splodeydopes.
Outstanding!
About farking time!!!!
Jack.
>>>* Explosions damaged five churches in Baghdad yesterday in attacks aimed at Iraq’s small but deep-rooted Christian community. <<<<
The bombing of these churches in Baghdad should mean that if the Islamics dont mind bombing Holy places , the US shouldnt mind bombing their holy places. If they run to a Mosque ----Destroy it.
Perhaps as more innocent Iraqis die as the result of the local and foreign insurgents more Iraqi men are going to get more pissed off and start getting serious about working with their newly formed government. Guess time will tell.
Strangly the MSM has recently indicated that in at least the city of Rammada, the tribes are telling the bad guys to leave. This has happened in other towns to my understanding.
Nope, Dimocrats are pathological. They'd say, "See, we told you Bush didn't send enough troops to Iraq. Iraqis had to the work for us."
God bless you, MadIvan.
God bless you, MadIvan.
Obviously some great articles today in the London Times, M.I.
US commanders said the Iraqi troops were highly effective in
Samarra..They are kickin @ss now
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