Iraq PM proclaims Basra assaults 'a success'

[Barrett808]

Source: AFP

Iraq PM proclaims Basra assaults 'a success'
by Salam Faraj

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Tuesday that a crackdown on Shiite militiamen in Basra was a success and that 10,000 extra troops would be recruited to keep order in the southern oil hub.

His statement came as officials said the toll from a military assault the premier ordered on Shiite militias a week ago had helped propel the March tally of Iraqis killed to 1,082, the highest monthly total since August.

Figures obtained by AFP from the interior, defence and health ministries showed that 925 civilians, 54 soldiers and 103 policemen were killed -- up 50 percent on February's figure of 721.

Of the Iraqis killed, around 460 were casualties of a week of bitter fighting between Iraqi forces and the Mahdi Army militia of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr which began in Basra but quickly spread to other Shiite areas of central and southern Iraq and to Baghdad.

Maliki said he had decided to implement a seven-point programme in Basra following "the stability and success of the security plan which achieved the aim of imposing law in the city and restoring normalcy."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080401/wl_afp/iraqunrest

[acmavm]

1. He's pretty good at this lying stuff. No wonder he was chosen to

run the puppet government.

[saigon68]

12. Sweet

What a liar

[leftchick]

2. just for a contrast

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41804


POLITICS: Embarrassed U.S. Starts to Disown Basra Operation
Analysis by Gareth Porter*

WASHINGTON, Mar 31 (IPS) - As it became clear last week that the "Operation Knights Assault" in Basra was in serious trouble, the George W. Bush administration began to claim in off-the-record statements to journalists that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had launched the operation without consulting Washington.

The effort to disclaim U.S. responsibility for the operation is an indication that it was viewed as a major embarrassment just as top commander Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker are about to testify before Congress.

Behind this furious backpedaling is a major Bush administration miscalculation about Moqtada al-Sadr and the Mahdi Army, which the administration believed was no longer capable of a coordinated military operation. It is now apparent that Sadr and the Mahdi Army were holding back because they were still in the process of retraining and reorganisation, not because Sadr had given up the military option or had lost control of the Mahdi Army.

The process of the administration distancing itself from the Basra operation began on Mar. 27, when the Washington Post reported that administration officials, speaking anonymously, said that al-Maliki had "decided to launch the offensive without consulting his U.S. allies..." One official claimed, "e can't quite decipher" what is going on, adding that it was a question of "who's got the best conspiracy" theory about why al-Maliki acted when he did.

[TomInTib]

5. No s**t What I want to know is....

who's doing the "Decidin'" now?

This is looking like some Monty Python skit.

[Supersedeas]

7. which way do we turn....which way do we turn -- leadership?

[Wizard777]

3. Okay, so Bush's Psychosis is contagious and he's infected Maliki.

[Wizard777]

4. Meet the new Baghdad Bob.

[DemoTex]

6. "10,000 extra troops would be recruited to keep order in the southern oil hub."

Rotsa Ruck, Nuri.

The Iraqi army's comportment in Basra last week reminded me of Cowboy's cruel joke about the ARVN rifle in Full Metal Jacket:

Cowboy: "Want to buy an ARVN rifle? It's never been used and only dropped once!"

[spanone]

8. a perfect bu$h* puppet....no need for the truth...ever

[leaningprog]

9. defining moment

The Decider called this one correctly. This was a defining moment
for Maliki. He can bullshit with the best the Neocons can muster.
He better train those 10,000 in Iran so when crunch time comes
he knows he can count on them.

[damntexdem]

10. Well, they were certainly a success for Sadr.

Not to mention for Iran.

[LynnTheDem]

11. The more people die, the more the idiots declare it a "success".

And of course it's only the idiots who believe such idiotic idiocy.

Ain't it, rightwingnuts.

[unkachuck]

13. how many....

"...925 civilians, 54 soldiers and 103 policemen were killed..."

....actual militia were killed?

....if you have to proclaim 'victory', you probably lost....you would keep your mouth shut and parlay your winnings if you hadn't....

[yellowcanine]

14. I always did wonder what happened to "Baghdad Bob". Alive and well in the office of the PM.