I'd say that Abizaid probably is probably just ready to retire after 30 years of doing a good job. I knew him in 1st Ranger Bn back in 1981, and he was already a senior captain fixing to take over his second company command. Without looking up his bio, I'd say he has at least 30 years on active duty, much of it in pretty tough assignments. He's probably ready for a change, especially since he probably isn't under consideration for the Chief of Staff job.
Does Abizaid speak Arabic?
"I'd say that Abizaid probably is probably just ready to retire after 30 years of doing a good job."
That's most likely the case. I heard on a news report that he wanted to leave last year but was stopped from doing so by Rumsfeld.