Posted on 11/28/2006 9:11:30 AM PST by jmc1969
US forces can neither crush the insurgency in western Iraq nor counter the rising popularity of the Al-Qaeda terrorist network in the area, media reported, citing a secret Marine Corps intelligence report.
As of mid-November the problems remained the same, a senior US intelligence official told the Post. "The fundamental questions of lack of control, growth of the insurgency and criminality" remain the same, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
According to the report, "the social and political situation has deteriorated to a point" that US and Iraqi troops "are no longer capable of militarily defeating the insurgency in al-Anbar," the Post reported.
The secret report was written by Marine Colonel Peter Devlin, a senior military intelligence officer with the Marine Expeditionary Force in the region. According to the Post, it did not appear to have been shared with Iraq's military.
Iraq's Sunni population is "embroiled in a daily fight for survival," fears "pogroms" by the Shiite majority, and is increasingly dependent on Al-Qaeda in Iraq as its only hope against growing Iranian dominance in Baghdad, the report reads.
"From the Sunni perspective, their greatest fears have been realized: Iran controls Baghdad and Anbaris have been marginalized," says the report, according to the Post.
Barring an additional 15,000 to 20,000 US troops deployed to the region in addition to billions of dollars in aid, "there is nothing" US troops "can do to influence" the insurgency, the report reads.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
The only way to end what Zarqawi started is to destory the Madhi Army and send more troops to Anbar.
If I were a Sunni, I would be getting out of town....as it were.
Paging Mr. Gonzales: Who the HELL is the senior intelligence official yapping to the Washington Post?
Beullar? Buellar? Anyone????????
In this case it was most likely the Marines themselves, we have lost over a thousand US troops in Anbar and still we don't have nearly enough troops to do real damage to the insurgency there.
The general in charge of Anbar said as much last month. He said he had enough troops to train Iraqi troops not enough to damage the insurgency there.
It is necessary for the US to take a step back, redefine its objectives, and take effective action. IMHO that means overpowering the insurgency AND placing the severe threat of force on Syria and Iran. Until they know they are threatened, they will continue to bleed us to death. That's the way the region works.
Anything pessimistic gets leaked and everything positive gets buried.
If Al Qaeda controls Anbar, then destroy it utterly and completely. How simple can it get?
Isn't that 3rd hand?
Here is another report about the report:
True or not, the memo says, "from the Sunni perspective, their greatest fears have been realized: Iran controls Baghdad, and Anbaris have been marginalized." Moreover, most Sunnis now believe it would be unwise to count on or help U.S. forces because they are seen as likely to leave the country before imposing stability.
Kinda reads a little differently ;-)
al Qaeda better take a close look at the thread above then- Coalition forces are comming for them & they need to understand that theuir days ARE numbered! http://sacredscoop.com
Here is the Wash Post article:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/4363564.html
It would be devoid of any life by now in a perfect world...but that's just me.
Destroy the Madhi Army and America becomes the protectors of the Sunnis and overnight al-Qaeda in Iraq would be gone.
The nations picked a hell of a time to go sh*t-a$$ crazy...
While theres sensical stuff in here, the above is just plain silly.
Well, then, take it back!!!
And the Western media as well. - Freeper Inteligence Report
Inteligence - Intelligence (not so smart for an intelligence agent. Rove will have my hide)
Faux-sNooze reported on this same subject. The lead was "Leaked Marine memo".
I think we should call for an IMMEDIATE evacuation and 20 minutes later nuke the place. :)
I'm sorry, but this is total crap and it pi$$es me off!
U.S. forces are more than capable of crushing the AQ insurgency—in Iraq, in the rest of the ME and anywhere else they darn-well please!
The reason we haven't won this war is that our well-trained and courageous military personnel aren't being allowed to. Instead, they're hamstrung by worthless, limp-wristed politicians who are afraid of doing what it takes to win ("offending the muslims").
I hate political correctness! It has no place in American society to begin with—much less in a theater of war where it can cost the lives of our bravest and finest young people!
Can't crush the insurgency?! BULL$#!T. We should be carpet-bombing and bunker-busting that whole freakin' place to rubble until every last AQ thug is worm food.
If Al Qaeda controls Anbar, then destroy it utterly and completely. How simple can it get?
Perfect opportunity to get rid of all that nasty VX gas stored hither and yon.
AND placing the severe >threat< of force on Syria and Iran
I say we let the Mahdi Army and the rest at the Sunnis for a bit, then kill the Mahdis after they're done.
Time to start ripping up Al-Qaeda, bust out those fighter planes and the bunker busters.
SS
Whether or not we annihilate them, I certainly did not mean we should make idle threats. Our soldiers are in the field, and we shouldn't tolerate them being endangered by terrorist sponsoring regimes. At the moment the fight seems to have gone out of the Bush administration.
As others have mentioned, counter that with this from stratfor.com;
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1744241/posts
If the Iraqis there took out 55 bad guys, that is good news indeed.
The Sunni's worst fears have come true?
Hmmm. Who's fault is that other than their own? They've facilitated al-qaeda in their midst. They shrugged their shoulders during Zarqawi's and the Baathist's insurgency against U.S. forces and later terrorist attacks on Shiites.
They could have worked with the U.S. and been the biggest proponents of a secular government. Instead, they chose hostility. In return they will be marginalized, not unlike the Shiites were when they harassed the British early in the 20th century.
It was inevitable that should either side choose not to participate, they would be marginalized. The best alternative for a rational thinker? To both participate in the hopes you don't end up on the business end of a civil war.
Nancy's fault.
There seems to be a disconnect between the assessment in the leak and the fact that the Abu Soda and Abu Mahal tribes (and I seem to recall 10 other Sunni tribe in Al Anbar province) are fighting against al Qaeda, and getting
air support from US forces.
" Paging Mr. Gonzales:"
BWAAA!!! The only thing Alberto seems interested in is getting justice for Valerie Plame.
If Gonzalez had ordered an investigation and convened a grand jury to investigate leak after leak after leak of classified documents..I would think that the NYT and WaPo would be more hesitant to print classified information.
But, instead , they've become more brazen. They know they have nothing to fear.
I do not understand how this administration can passively tolerate the constant violations of national security.
Huh?
AFP=Agence France-Presse.
'Nuff said.
Great, we have a region they control. Carpet bomb 24/7 for about 2 weeks, collateral damage be damned.
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