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WASHINGTON D.C. (April 11, 2008) - Iraqi security forces
acquitted themselves well, in view of their relative inexperience,
in recent fighting against terrorists and criminals in the southern
part of the country, including Basra, as well as in parts of
Baghdad, the top U.S. military officer in Iraq said.
"The deployment was very impressive, … certainly not something
Iraqis could have done a year ago," Army Gen. David H. Petraeus,
commander of Multinational Force Iraq, said during a conference
call with military analysts.
At the end of March, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered the
rapid deployment of thousands of Iraqi security forces to Basra to
confront illegal militias and criminal elements said to be
operating there. The deployment touched off a spike of violence in
that city that spread to Najaf, Karbala and southern Baghdad.
The Iraqi forces "did quite well" overall, Petraeus pointed out,
although some were reported reluctant to participate. Incomplete
Iraqi planning and coordination for the operation likely
contributed to this, he said, noting some inexperienced infantry
leaders were reported to have made hasty, ill-advised decisions
while immersed in the fury of combat.
The "conditions [of battle] were not set, arguably, the way that
they should have been before having dismounted infantry engage with
the enemy," Petraeus explained. "That is hugely important."
The operations also highlighted the need to improve coordination
and communications between Iraqi ground forces and their coalition
air-to-ground support elements, the four-star general observed.
Still, the majority of Iraqi security forces -- especially the
special operations units -- performed well in fighting against
insurgents in Basra and other areas of the country, Petraeus
emphasized.
The Iraqi forces performed visibly better "once there was a
deliberate approach, if you will, where the conditions were set for
each subsequent move," Petraeus said.
"I'm not sure I would have predicted that they could deploy as
substantial a force as they did, as rapidly as they did -- at all,"
Petraeus said. On the other hand, he conceded, there are clearly
areas - including command-and-control systems - that require
improvement.
During his testimony yesterday before the House Armed Services
Committee, Petraeus noted that Maliki's decision to send Iraqi
troops into Basra and other parts of Iraq to put down violence
perpetrated by illegal militias represents Iraqis' desire to attend
to their internal affairs.
"That was not something that we pushed him to do," Petraeus told
the committee. "That was something that they wanted to do."
Meanwhile, anti-insurgent operations in Basra continue, Petraeus
reported, noting Iraqi security forces now have control of the city
of Um Qasr, the country's main port. Um Qasr is a major conduit for
the smuggling of weapons and contraband into Iraq, the general
said.
"The operation is still very much an ongoing affair, and it will
be, frankly, for months," Petraeus told the analysts.
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