On
November 17, 2008, when Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and U.S.
ambassador Ryan Crocker signed an agreement for the withdrawal of U.S.
troops from Iraq, citizens from both countries applauded. While many
were disappointed about the lengthy timeline for the withdrawal of the
troops, it appeared that a roadmap was set to end the war and
occupation. However, the first step — withdrawing U.S. troops from
Iraqi cities by June 30, 2009 — is full of loopholes, and tens of
thousands of U.S. soldiers will remain in the cities after the
"deadline" passes.
BAGHDAD - Iraqi taxi driver Haitham Nief is looking forward to the partial pull out of U.S. combat troops this month from the northern city of Mosul and elsewhere.
Mosul remains one of the most violent places in Iraq, but Nief says he is sure the security situation will improve once the Americans leave town and withdraw to camps outside.
"Anyone who wants to fight them can go there and attack their bases without harming civilians," he said.
A major landmark in the in the United States's military presence in
Iraq arrives on 30 June 2009, when the army is scheduled to withdraw
its combat-troops from the country's cities. The terms of the
"status-of-forces agreement" with the Iraqi government will see most of
these (currently 133,000) soldiers relocated
to a number of major bases in rural areas, though some will join the
30,000 troops that have left Iraq since the peak of the "surge" in
mid-2008.
BAGHDAD - Most US troops have moved outside Iraqi cities and the American pull-out from the country's urban centres, due by the end of the month, is on schedule, the top US commander said on Monday.
General Ray Odierno added that American forces will leave the restive northern city of Mosul as well.
"The dark days of previous years are behind us," Odierno told reporters at a press conference in Baghdad. "It is a fitting time that our combat forces move out."
Let's face it, even Bo is photogenic, charismatic. He's a camera hound. And as for Barack, Michelle, Sasha, and Malia -- keep in mind that we're now in a first name culture -- they all glow on screen.
President Barack Obama's much-anticipated Cairo speech
reflected a significant shift away from the ideological framework of
militarism and unilateralism that shaped the Bush administration's
war-based policy toward the Arab and Muslim worlds.
BAGHDAD - Iraqi security forces have arrested five Americans in connection with the killing of a contractor last month in Baghdad's Green Zone, Iraqi officials said Sunday. It could be the first case in which Americans face local justice under a security pact signed last year.
The Americans were detained Wednesday, although U.S. and Iraqi officials say no charges have been filed. James Fennell, a U.S. Embassy spokesman, said Sunday that consular officials had visited the men a day after their arrest to make sure "they're being afforded their rights under Iraqi law."
Gen George Casey said the world remained "dangerous and unpredictable", and the Pentagon must plan for extended US combat and stability operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan that could deploy 50,000 US military personnel for a decade.
"Global trends are pushing in the wrong direction," Gen Casey said. "They fundamentally will change how the army works."
His planning envisioned combat troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for a decade as part of a sustained American commitment to fighting extremism and terrorism in the Middle East.
" And no one dared disturb the sound of silence. "
--Paul Simon
The "debate"
over all the bad and scary things that will happen if Obama closes
Guantanamo and we then incarcerate those detainees in American prisons
is so painfully stupid even by the standards of our political discourse
that it's hard to put into words, and it also perfectly illustrates the
steps that typically lead to America's National Security policies:
