US hints at Iraq troops cut despite raging violence
Foreign Desk Report
BAGHDAD—Gunmen in 10 army-type vehicles shot dead a Sunni Arab tribal
chief and four relatives in a pre-dawn raid in Baghdad as the United
States again indicated troop reductions could be near.
The gunmen, dressed as Iraqi soldiers, broke into the southeast Baghdad
home of Sheikh Fadel Sarhid Ali around 4:00 am (0100 GMT) and killed the
tribal leader, three of his sons and a son-in-law before escaping, said
police.
That attack was followed shortly afterwards by the assassination of a
high ranking official in the ministry of industry, Radi Ismail Jawad,
and the former chief of traffic police, General Mahdi Kassem — both in
Baghdad.
Leaders from all religious and political affiliations have been
regularly targeted by death squads in the strife following the fall of
Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003.
The latest bloodshed came as the death toll from car bomb attack on
Tuesday aimed at police on a busy market street in Kirkuk, northern
Iraq, rose to 22, include four police. Twenty-eight people were wounded.
At a recent meeting of Iraqi factions in Cairo, the restoration of
internal security and the buildup of the Iraqi army were given high
priority — as well as calls for a timetable for the withdrawal of
foreign troops.
A leading Shiite radical cleric, Moqtada Sadr, on Wednesday urged voters
in December’s scheduled general election to back candidates who “call
for the withdrawal of foreign forces,” one of his spokesmen said. In
televised remarks in Washington, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
said troop reductions could occur soon.
“The president has said that as soon as Iraqi forces are ready, we want
to see a reduction in our own forces, and I think those days are going
to be coming fairly soon when Iraqis are going to be more and more
capable of carrying out the functions to secure their own future,” Rice
told Fox News Channel. About 159,000 US troops are currently deployed in
Iraq ahead of the December 15 general election, the final stage in the
political transition to democracy after the fall of Saddam Hussein in
April 2003. Once the election is over, the number of US troops is
expected to be reduced to about 138,000, a figure US defence officials
refer to as the “baseline”.
Rice insisted that for US troop withdrawal to begin, Iraqi security
forces must demonstrate their ability to “hold territory” against the
insurgency.
The remarks came amid increasing discussion over the presence of US-led
foreign troops in the country, among Iraqis and by the US Congress.
A poll published on Tuesday showed that 63 percent of Americans favoured
bringing troops home in the next year. Another 61 percent doubted that
democracy and stability could take hold in Iraq.
US authorities are eager to show a steady transfer of responsibility to
the Iraqis, with regular announcements of successful joint military
operations along with the handover of bases.
“The Iraqi Army has been the main effort in many of our operations,”
said Colonel John L. Gronski of the US marines in Ramadi on Tuesday.
“They continue to exhibit professionalism and resolve in securing their
country”.
Iraqi government efforts to combat the insurgency took a new tack over
the past two days with an offer by President Jalal Talabani, while in
Cairo, to negotiate with insurgents.
He followed this up with a landmark visit to Iran that concluded
Wednesday with assurances from the Iranians to support Iraq’s security.
“Iran is interested in our security just as it is interested in its own
security,” Talabani said as he was seen off by hardline Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. “They all said one thing to me: that
there are no limits to Iran’s cooperation with and support for the Iraqi
people and government”. |
