"The Way Forward"

[S O F I]

I will provide articles outlining his plan later.

What do you guys think about the plan?

 

[Jokerman]

Who, Donald Trump?

 

[S O F I]

BBC

Bush boosts troop numbers in Iraq

Mr Bush said there was no magic formula for success in Iraq
Bush statement.

US President George W Bush has ordered more than 20,000 additional troops to Iraq, as part of a new strategy for tackling the conflict there.

In a live televised address, Mr Bush said the deployment would help break the cycle of violence and hasten the day US troops are able to come home.

He said the situation in Iraq was unacceptable, and that responsibility for mistakes rested with him.

However, the announcement brought immediate criticism from Democrats.

Party leaders said Congress would give the proposals the "scrutiny our troops and the American people expect".

"We will demand answers to the tough questions that have not been asked or answered to date," they said in a joint statement.

The Democrats have promised a non-binding vote in both houses of Congress on the strategy.

The US currently has 132,000 troops stationed in Iraq.

Change of strategy

President Bush began with a bleak assessment of the situation, saying that sectarian violence had overwhelmed political gains made by Iraqi since the 2003 invasion.


The BBC's Adam Brookes in Washington said he sounded chastened, saying that any mistakes were his own responsibility.

A change of strategy was needed, he added.

Mr Bush said the vast majority of the new troops would be sent to Baghdad and would fight alongside Iraqi units to secure neighbourhoods from "terrorists and insurgents".

"Our troops will have a well-defined mission, to help Iraqis clear and secure neighbourhoods, to help them protect the local population, and to help ensure that the Iraqi forces left behind are capable of providing the security that Baghdad needs," he said.

But Mr Bush said the effort would succeed where previous operations had failed, because this time troop levels would be sufficient to hold areas that had been cleared.

Another 4,000 troops would go to Anbar province, he said.

Al-Qaeda was planning to seize control of the province, but local tribal leaders were starting to show willingness to fight them, the president said.

"As a result, our commanders believe we have an opportunity to deal a serious blow to the terrorists," he added.

'Beyond military'

Mr Bush also warned the Iraqi government to keep to its commitments.

"A successful strategy for Iraq goes beyond military operations," he said. "Ordinary Iraqi citizens must see that military operations are accompanied by visible improvements in their neighbourhoods and communities."

"So America will hold the Iraqi government to the benchmarks it has announced."

Iraq's territorial integrity also needed defending, Mr Bush said, and this meant interrupting the flow of support for insurgents from Iran and Syria.

Mr Bush summed up by saying the year ahead would require more patience, sacrifice and resolve from the American people.

Victory would not look like those won in previous wars - but failure in Iraq would be a disaster for the United States, he said.

But the president's announcement was sharply criticised by a number of senior Democrats, whose party recently took control of both houses of Congress.

Senator Richard Durbin said the president was ignoring the advice of the former US commander in Iraq, Gen John Abizaid, that increasing troop numbers would prevent the Iraqis from taking more responsibility for their own future.

While most Republican members of Congress backed the president, one senator, George Voinovich, doubted the wisdom of a troop increase.

"At this point I am sceptical that a surge in troops alone will bring an end to sectarian violence and the insurgency that is fomenting instability in Iraq," he said.

Mr Bush is expected to follow his address with a news conference at the White House on Thursday morning, accompanied by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Peter Pace.

 

[Jokerman]

Bush gave two reasons for the failure to secure Baghdad in particular.

There are "not enough Iraqi and American troops to secure neighborhoods" he said. (Where were you when everyone was saying that for the last 3 years?)

And there are too many restrictions on the troops that are in place, Bush said. (Not enough rapes and murders by US troops.)

"Our military commanders reviewed the new Iraqi plan to ensure that it addressed these mistakes. They report that it does," he said. (They played video games for a couple of hours.)

"They also report that this plan can work ... and [Iraqi] Prime Minister [Nuri] al-Maliki has pledged that political or sectarian interference will not be tolerated." (He's powerless to stop it.)

Bush rejected ideas "to step back." ("I might fall off the platform.")

That, the president said "would force a collapse of the Iraqi government. ... Such a scenario would result in our troops being forced to stay in Iraq even longer, and confront an enemy that is even more lethal." (If that were the case, Bush would want the goverment to collapse.)

 

[S O F I]

Yeah, I mean, I don't see this plan working at all. A surge of 150K soldiers, maybe, but not like this. It seems that he's just trying to buy time and maintain dignity until it's his time to go. "In too deep", I'd say the US is.

 

[Jokerman]

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- More than 34,000 civilians were "violently killed" across Iraq last year, with an average of 94 killed every day, according to a new United Nations report.

"According to information made available to UNAMI, 6,376 civilians were violently killed in November and December 2006, with no less than 4,731 in Baghdad, most of them as a result of gunshot wounds," the report said.

"Compared to the number killed in September and October, there has been a slight reduction. It is evident however that violence has not been contained but has continued to claim a very high number of innocent victims. During 2006, a total of 34,452 civilians have been violently killed and 36,685 wounded."

 

[CoolWaterz]

 

[goymz]

^ Thanks for posting that.

When it comes to this issue - which pisses me off to no end - I'd rather quote an Iraqi insurgent from the weekend paper.

"20,000 soldiers will never be able to achieve what 140,000 have failed to achieve so far."
- Abu Mo'ath of the Islamic and Nationalist Front for the Liberation of Iraq.