Growing violence in Iraq concerns envoy

[deadparrot]

WASHINGTON - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq on Tuesday expressed concern about growing sectarian violence but said suddenly withdrawing U.S. troops would almost certainly make it worse.

Zalmay Khalilzad stopped short of calling the current strife in Iraq a civil war, arguing that state institutions are holding up and that state leaders say they want to stay in government.

"It's a matter of definition," Khalilzad said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank. "There is significant sectarian violence, no doubt about it."

He added: "Because of the desire of the leaders to work together and the state institutions to hold together, I do not believe the conditions I described are a civil war."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060711/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_iraq

[Master Mahon]

1. "withdrawing U.S. troops would almost certainly make it worse."

It doesn't seem to me that our forces being there is making it any better!
After all, it was OUR forces that started the whole thing off, so it seems quite rational that, if our forces leave, things would certainly improve.
If nothing else, by our leaving it would leave them all on an 'equal footing' and enable them to work it out for themselves, for better or worse!

[rodeodance]

2. "It's a matter of definition," Khalilzad said huh huh!