- The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq says he believes
coalition successes are forcing increasingly desperate supporters of the
former regime to step up their guerrilla attacks.
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- General Abizaid admits the ongoing insecurity in Iraq
is a problem.
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- But the newly-installed commander of the U.S. Central
Command said backers of the ousted regime of Saddam Hussein are targeting
the coalition's successes. "You have to understand that there will
be an increase in violence as we achieve political success because the
people that have a stake in ensuring the defeat of the coalition realize
that time is getting short," General Abizaid said.
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- General Abizaid said those behind the escalating violence
include remnants of the former Baathist regime and some foreign terrorist
fighters. He said they are organized in small cells at the regional level
and are now conducting what he views as a classical guerrilla-type campaign
against the U.S.-led coalition. He said the attacks are becoming better
coordinated and more sophisticated.
-
- Nevertheless, he said American troops are performing
magnificently - even though some have begun complaining about the length
of their tours in Iraq.
-
- But General Abizaid insists the soldiers should know
it is better for the United States to fight the war against terrorism abroad
- and not at home.
-
- He also said Arab critics of the United States should
know American troops will not be driven from Iraq. "War is a struggle
of wills. You look at the Arab press, they say 'we drove the Americans
out of Beirut, we drove them out of Somalia, you know we will drive them
out of Baghdad.' And that's just not true," he said.
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- The General's comments came on a day of multiple attacks
in Iraq. The mayor of an Iraqi city was killed after being accused of cooperating
with American forces. One American soldier was killed and three others
wounded when their convoy was attacked and a surface-to-air missile was
fired at - but missed - a military transport plane.
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- General's Abizaid's characterization of the ongoing fighting
as a classic guerrilla-type war contradicts the view of Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld.
-
- Mr. Rumsfeld told reporters just last month that what
was happening in Iraq was not anything like a guerrilla war or what he
described as an organized resistance.
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- http://www.voanews.com/article.cfm?objectID=4805C293-4125-4C09-B039368F36137CC7#
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