Iraq aide laments troop failings

[DoYouEverWonder]

20 October 2006

The Iraqi president's security adviser has said Iraqi forces trying to improve security in Baghdad are under funded, badly trained and poorly equipped.

Wafiq al-Samarra'i said that sometimes the insurgents had better weapons.

US President George W Bush said the situation in Iraq was "tough" and that he would consult senior US generals to see if a change in tactics was needed.

Their comments come a day after the US military said a two-month operation in Baghdad had failed to reduce violence.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6071258.stm

[whistle]

1. How much does the U.S. military claim they spent training Iraqi

...security forces? If they gave the money to sub-contractors, the American tax payers have the right to claim it back.

[warrens]

2. Billions and billions

It's all a scam. We don't really want a REAL army there. They'd go over to the other side, and take their advanced weapons and training with them. And we know it. So we pretend to build an army and they pretend to try. They get a paycheck, Bush gets some cover and the chance to say "when they stand up, we stand down" a few hundred more times before we impeach his lying thug ass.

[TacticalPeek]

3. More than half a billion dollars earmarked to fight the insurgency in Iraq

More than half a billion dollars earmarked to fight the insurgency in Iraq was stolen by people the U.S. had entrusted to run the country's Ministry of Defense before the 2005 elections, according to Iraqi investigators.

Iraq's former minister of finance says coalition members like the U.S. and Britain are doing little to help recover the money or catch suspects, most of whom fled the country. The 60 Minutes investigation also turned up audio recordings of a suspect who seems to be discussing the transfer of $45 million to the account of a top political adviser to the interim defense minister.

"The only explanation I can come up with is that too many people in positions of power and authority in the new Iraq have been, in one way or another, found with their hands inside the cookie jar," says Allawi, who left his post when a new Iraqi government was formed earlier this year.

Ziad Cattan was in charge of military procurement at a time when the ministry of defense went on a $1.2 billion buying spree. Allawi estimates that $750 to $800 million of that money was stolen.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2571375&mesg_id=2571375


Too bad, Iraq. Y'all know how it's 'tough' and all.

[DoYouEverWonder]

4. Maybe if they spent a few bucks on providing electric, water & fuel

the Iraqi people could start to rebuild their own country.