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Attention Bay Area FReepers - General Abizaid is the Nimitz Lecture series speaker this year. Tuesday, March 11 at 1900.

Gen. Abizaid: No draft please By Mike Wereschagin TRIBUNE-REVIEW Wednesday, October 31, 2007 The military is stretched thin and the tangle of problems in the Middle East will take generations to unravel, but the former top U.S. commander in that region said this morning he still thinks a draft is the wrong way to go. "Young people need to figure out how to serve the country," said retired four-star Gen. John P. Abizaid, who spoke to the Trib this morning before a speech at Carnegie Mellon University.

Every effort should be made to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, but failing that, the world could live with a nuclear-armed regime in Tehran, a recently retired commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East said Monday. John Abizaid, the retired Army general who headed Central Command for nearly four years, said he was confident that if Iran gained nuclear arms, the United States could deter it from using them. "Iran is not a suicide nation," he said. "I mean, they may have some people in charge that don't appear to be rational, but I doubt that the Iranians...

Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, who directed the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and then resigned last November after months of mounting pressure, will join Stanford University's Hoover Institution as a visiting fellow. Rumsfeld, who also led the nation's response to Sept. 11, will participate in the institution's new task force of scholars and experts studying post-Sept. 11 ideology and terror, according to Hoover director John Raisian, in a statement released Friday afternoon. "I have asked Don to join the distinguished group of scholars that will pursue new insights on the direction of thinking that the United...

The 1st Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division (1-3ID)is currently engaged in street to street fighting in central Ramadi. The much anticipated attack follows months of hands off policy as troops were routinely sniped and attacked with orders not to retaliate. After much planning U.S. forces along with a collection of hired local tribesmen from nearby Sofia (a suburb of Ramadi) and other groups are attacking and clearing the are house by house. The tribes have been formed into paramilitary units called "Emergency Response Units" and are linked with U.S. troops. The 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment (1-9), 2nd Infantry...

Some of America’s most senior military commanders are prepared to resign if the White House orders a military strike against Iran, according to highly placed defence and intelligence sources.

Bush 'to replace top US generals' Mr Bush is to announce a new Iraq strategy soon President George W Bush is to change his military operations chief for Iraq and Afghanistan, US media reports say.Adm William Fallon will replace Gen John Abizaid as head of US Central Command and there will be a new ground commander in Iraq, ABC News reported. It also said that US ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad is to replace John Bolton as US ambassador to the UN. The reports come days before Mr Bush unveils a new strategy for Iraq that could include thousands...

President Bush is shaking up the team responsible for carrying out his military and diplomatic strategies in Iraq as he prepares to outline a new direction for the war that has raged for nearly four years. Bush will replace Gen. John P. Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, and Gen. George Casey, the chief general in Iraq, in the coming weeks, according to media reports Thursday. A revamping of the administration's national security team was already under way. Bush wants to replace Abizaid with Adm. William Fallon, the top U.S. commander in the Pacific, and Casey's replacement...

WASHINGTON — Army Gen. John P. Abizaid, commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, has submitted plans to retire and will leave his post in March, a step likely to make way for a change in military strategy at a time the Bush administration is seeking a new plan for Iraq. Abizaid has been the primary architect of U.S. military strategy in Iraq and Afghanistan since becoming head of the U.S. Central Command more than three years ago. He has strenuously resisted calls to increase troop levels to quell rising violence in Baghdad, arguing it would increase Iraqi dependence...

By Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times | December 20, 2006 WASHINGTON -- Army General John P. Abizaid, commander of US forces in the Middle East, has submitted plans to retire and will leave his post in March, a step likely to make way for a change in military strategy at a time the Bush administration is seeking a new plan for Iraq.

Speaking over the faint chants of a small group of protesters outside, US Army General John P. Abizaid told an audience at Harvard University yesterday that the war in Iraq was winnable despite the gathering dissent at home. "I think we can win this fight," he said. "I think we are winning this fight." At his address at the Kennedy School forum, Abizaid was asked on several occasions why American public opinion had turned so decidedly against the war, and he consistently said that the despair he felt in Washington was not reflected in the field among American or Iraqi...

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) - The top U.S. general in the Middle East said on Friday that if the world does not find a way to stem the rise of Islamic militancy, it will face a third world war. Army Gen. John Abizaid compared the rise of militant ideologies, such as the force driving al Qaeda, to the rise of fascism in Europe in the 1920s and 1930s that set the stage for World War Two. "If we don't have guts enough to confront this ideology today, we'll go through World War Three tomorrow," Abizaid said in a speech titled "The...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2006 -- Both Iraqi and American leaders believe the Iraqi government can take control of its country and develop a stable nation that is at peace with its neighbors and an ally in the war on terror, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East said here today. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Army Gen. John P. Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command, outlined the current situation in Iraq and the way forward. Violence remains high across Iraq, Abizaid acknowledged, but the Iraqi security forces consistently perform well and, with strong support from the...

The United States has developed a grudging respect for Iran's military. Officials said the Defense Department and Joint Chiefs of Staff have assessed that Iran's military was the second most powerful in the Middle East. They said that unlike Iraq, Iran was capable of sustaining a long war against the United States. "Right now Iran is the most powerful military force in the region, except for the United States of America," U.S. Central Command chief Gen. John Abizaid said. Abizaid said he was referring only to those countries in Central Command. The command contains such Arab countries as Egypt and...

TAMPA, Fla. - Gen. John Abizaid, the head of U.S. Central Command, was briefly hospitalized over the weekend for a stomach illness that appeared to be food poisoning, the military said Monday. Abizaid, who spent Friday night in the hospital, was back at work Monday at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, command spokesman Maj. Matthew McLaughin said. The Tampa-based command oversees U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan . "The best we can tell he had symptoms consistent with food poisoning," McLaughin said. He said Abizaid did not eat fresh spinach, which has been linked to an outbreak of E....

WASHINGTON - In a new sign of mounting strain from the war in Iraq, the Army has extended the combat tours of about 4,000 soldiers who would otherwise be returning home, defense officials said Monday. The 1st Brigade of 1st Armored Division, which is operating in the vicinity of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, will be kept in place for several weeks beyond its scheduled departure, the officials said. The officials spoke only on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been formally announced by the Pentagon. The brigade's home base is in Germany. The soldiers' families were...

BAGHDAD — Iraqi security forces are becoming more capable every day, fighting and dying for their country because the future depends on them, U.S. Central Command’s commander said this week. “I come to the conclusion that Iraqis are fighting and dying for their country, that the government has pledged their sacred honor and their future to making this work,” Army Gen. John Abizaid said in an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. “Their lives are on the line.” Iraqi forces now number more than 300,000, and while they still have some bad days and challenges to overcome, they are steadily improving,...

In the fall of 2002, the U.S. military set up a task force here on the Horn of Africa to kill any al Qaeda fighters seeking refuge in the region. The base was crawling with elite special-operations teams, and an unmanned Predator plane armed with Hellfire missiles sat ready on the runway. Today, the base houses 1,800 troops whose mission is to build health clinics, wells and schools in areas where Islamic extremists are active. The idea is to ease some of the suffering that leaves the locals susceptible to the radicals' message, thus bolstering local governments, which will run...

Iraqi Police in Mosul began specialized training with the Coalition's Police Transition Team in July. Department of Defense photo by Cpl. Richard Vogt. WASHINGTON – The U.S. commander who oversees military operations in the Middle East says extremism “remains a serious danger to global peace and stability” and that the influence of private militias in the Middle East must be curbed. Army Gen. John Abizaid , who leads the U.S. Central Command, told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday that the forces of extremism are strong, ruthless and well-connected and that private militias as “the curse of the...

WASHINGTON, July 25, 2006 – The leader of U.S. Central Command said he believes sectarian violence in and around Baghdad is the "gravest threat" facing Iraq today. This is a decisive period in the country, Army Gen. John Abizaid told National Public Radio's John Hendren in a recent interview. "First and foremost we have to stabilize the situation in Baghdad before we need to get overly focused on leaving," Abizaid said. Baghdad is both the largest city and political center of Iraq. It is also the primary battleground between Shiite and Sunni groups struggling for supremacy in the nation. "The...

BAGHDAD, June 13, 2006 – Defeating an ideology is much more difficult than defeating a physical threat, but that is at the heart of U.S. Central Command's strategy in this region, the command's chief, Army Gen. John Abizaid, said in an interview today. Abizaid, the commander of U.S. CENTCOM, is in Iraq, where he met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and newly appointed Defense Minister Abdel Qader Jassim. It is no shock that al Qaeda and associated groups are the main threat facing the United States, the general said. "This ideology backed by (Osama) bin Laden, (Ayman al-) Zawahiri and,...

SOUTHWEST ASIA, April 30, 2006 – It's critical that the American people muster up the will to see the conflict here through to victory, the commander of U.S. Central Command told civilian business, civic and academic leaders visiting here yesterday. Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command, tells participants in the Joint Civilian Orientation Conference it's critical that the United States complete its mission in Southwest Asia. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Larry Chambers, USGC  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Military officials asked that the visit's exact location not be released. Army Gen. John Abizaid...

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2006 – More people are trying to hold Iraq together than trying to take it apart, the commander of U.S. Central Command said here today. Army Gen. John Abizaid said during an interview that he does not believe Iraq is close to a civil war. "I believe a civil war is possible if a bad series of events take place," he said. But the Iraqi government "is starting to come to grips with what it needs to do to build a government of national unity, and the army has held together well," he added. If Iraqis form...

WASHINGTON, March 15, 2006 – Iraq is not on the verge of a civil war, and sectarian issues in the country are controllable, the commander of U.S. Central Command told the House Armed Services Committee here today. Army Gen. John Abizaid testified about CENTCOM's posture. He told the representatives he believes a government of national unity will emerge in Iraq and that the Iraqi security forces will continue to improve. Abizaid said he was concerned about sectarian violence in Iraq since the bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra on Feb. 22. He said he believes fugitive Jordanian terrorist Abu...

WASHINGTON, March 15, 2006 – Arabs throughout the Middle East are taking note of Iraq's extraordinary march toward democracy, the commander of U.S. Central Command said here yesterday. "It's interesting when I go around the rest of the Arab world; everybody wants to talk about Iraqi politics," Army Gen. John Abizaid told a congressional subcommittee on military and veterans affairs. "That's interesting because they can talk about Iraqi politics, but can't necessarily talk about politics in their own countries." Abizaid said he believes the Iraqi people are confident they will be better off in the future than they were under...

The United States may want to keep a long-term military presence in Iraq to bolster moderates against extremists in the region and protect the flow of oil, the Army general overseeing U.S. military operations in Iraq said on Tuesday. Echoing Bush's statement on Monday on the outlook for reducing U.S. forces in Iraq, Abizaid said if Iraqis can form a unified government, "I think there's every reason to believe ... that we'll be able to bring the size of the force down much more so by December of '06." Abizaid cited the need to fight al Qaeda and other extremists...

Gen. John Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, took an unusual step for a military leader Thursday, criticizing opposition to the attempted purchase of some U.S. port operations by a Dubai-owned company, calling it "Arab and Muslim bashing." Abizaid, a grandson of Lebanese immigrants, and other military officials were asked about DP World's withdrawal from the deal as they left a briefing of lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He said the United Arab Emirates, of which Dubai is a part, is vital to the military's stake in the Persian Gulf region. The Navy heavily uses the port there....

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25, 2006 – American troops are an "essential stabilizing tool" in Iraq and their presence is needed for "Iraq to emerge as a responsible nation in a tough neighborhood and to keep the terrorists out," the commander of U.S. troops in the Middle East said today. Army Gen. John Abizaid, head of U.S. Central Command, discussed stabilization efforts and U.S. troop levels in Iraq during an interview with radio host Laura Ingraham via telephone from Qatar. Abizaid spoke on how Sunni Muslims are helping rebuild Iraq. "It's not just that we're fighting a Sunni insurgency, we're also having...

I watched C-span and heard Brian Lamb read this e-mail from a soldier that wrote in. After I noticed the e-mail posted here. Naval War College speech by GEN Abizaid email | 11/22/05 http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1527192/posts Posted on 11/22/2005 9:42:24 PM PST by StoneGiant Email received from the West Point “old grad” network… After searching around I could not find the speech anywhere other than message boards. I found this site pointing us out as being a supporter of the e-mail? http://www.karmalised.com/ Be interesting if the lefties that seminar call c-span conjured up this e-mail and some of us took the bait?...

Notes From a Student at the Naval War College on Army Gen. Abizaid's Recent SpeechClassification: UNCLASSIFIED Caveats: FOUO CSA Sends:This is as clear as it can be stated - please get these words out to all of the men and women in your organizations. I encourage you to personally carry this message to the American People. As Soldiers, we have the most credible voices in America. We need to lead the way.Thanks for your leadership and for all you have given. Cindy and I send our very best wishes to each of you and your families as we serve together...

Naval War College speech by GEN Abizaid Email received from the West Point “old grad” network… Subject: General Abizaid - Commander, US Central Command (Middle East less Israel and Turkey) General Abizaid spoke to the Naval War College last week. The audience was made up primarily of War College students who are mid-grade/senior military officers. The majority of these officers have served in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, so there was a real understanding of dynamics of the region. BS would not sell to this audience. Here is a short summary of General Abizaid's comments. * He is amazed...

The Talk Shows Sunday, October 2nd, 2005 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas; Hal Koster, owner, Fran O'Brien's Stadium Steakhouse in Washington, D.C.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Reps. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., and Thomas Reynolds, R-N.Y.; Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander, U.S. Central Command. FACE THE NATION (CBS): Reps. David Dreier, R-Calif., John Shadegg, R-Ariz., and James Leach, R-Iowa; Abizaid. THIS WEEK (ABC): Army Gen. George Casey, top U.S. commander in Iraq; Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer; Lynne Cheney, wife of Vice President Dick Cheney. LATE EDITION (CNN) :...

  For Immediate ReleaseOffice of the Press SecretaryOctober 1, 2005 President's Radio Address            Audio      THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week I met with the generals who are overseeing our efforts in Iraq -- Generals Abizaid and Casey -- to discuss our strategy for victory. They updated me on the operations in Baghdad last weekend in which Iraqi and coalition forces tracked down and killed the second most wanted al Qaeda leader in Iraq. This brutal killer was a top lieutenant of the terrorist Zarqawi. He was also one of the terrorists responsible for the recent wave of attacks...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 29, 2005 – Al Qaeda terrorists hope to drive American influence from the Middle East and install a global Muslim leader in Saudi Arabia, Army Gen. John Abizaid said today. Speaking during Senate testimony, Abizaid, chief of U.S. Central Command, said al Qaeda's objectives are clear. "They believe in a jihad, a jihad to overthrow the legitimate regimes in the region," he said. "In order to do that, they first must drive America from the region." Al Qaeda believes the most important prize is Saudi Arabia, which is home to the holy shrines in Mecca and Medina. If...

Senior Pentagon officials have opposed the release of photographs and videotapes of the abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, arguing that they would incite public opinion in the Muslim world and put the lives of American soldiers and officials at risk, according to documents unsealed in federal court in New York. Gen. Richard B. Myers... said... he believed that "riots, violence and attacks by insurgents will result" if the images were released. The [ACLU wants] to obtain under the Freedom of Information Act the release of 87 photos and four videotapes taken at Abu Ghraib.... "I condemn...

WASHINGTON - The US military is close to locating al-Qaeda's frontman in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, General John Abizaid, the commander of US forces in the region, said. "I think we have a good idea of where to find him," Abizaid told CNN. "We know what we're doing in our efforts how to get him," he said. "But I want to also stress that it's not about one man. It's about his network. His network exists inside Iraq. It's connected to al-Qaeda. It's got facilitation nodes in Syria," Abizaid told the US cable news channel. "It brings foreign fighters in...

WOLF BLITZER, HOST: It's noon in Washington, 9:00 a.m. in Los Angeles, 7:00 p.m. in Beirut and 8:00 p.m. in Baghdad. Wherever you're watching from around the world thanks very much for joining us for "LATE EDITION." We'll get to our interview with General Abizaid in just a moment, and later we'll also get the views of Senator Edward Kennedy. But first, a quick check of what's in the news right now. (NEWSBREAK) BLITZER: On Tuesday President Bush is set to deliver a prime time televised address to the nation to try to explain U.S. policy in Iraq. Polls show...

The Talk Shows Sunday, June 19th, 2005 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld; singer and activist Bono. FACE THE NATION (CBS): Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command. THIS WEEK (ABC): Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, former FBI Director L. Patrick Gray.LATE EDITION (CNN) : Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, President Emile Lahoud of Lebanon.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-1668306,00.html 1. -------------Once dismissed as a small and insignificant part of the insurgency in Iraq, the US military now concedes that the threat posed by foreign fighters is one of the most dangerous they face.------------ 2. -------------General John Abizaid, the commander of the US Central Command, which is responsible for Iraq, told Congress on Thursday that he believed that more foreign fighters were entering the country now than six months ago.--------------- http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0624/dailyUpdate.html 3. --------------Gen. Abizaid "conceded yesterday that the Iraqi insurgency is as strong as it was six months ago------------ There will be no civil war. By definition it *CANNOT*...

The top US military commander in the Middle East warned yesterday that troops are questioning whether the American public supports the Iraq war and implored political leaders to engage in a frank discussion about how to keep the country behind a mission that the armed forces believe is ''a war worth fighting." Army General John Abizaid said that without that support, the military's ability to prevail against Iraqi insurgents and Islamic extremists will be at serious risk. ''When I look back here, at what I see is happening in Washington, within the Beltway, I've never seen the lack of [public]...

WASHINGTON - Is the glass in Iraq half empty, or half full? Is that light at the end of the tunnel sunshine, or an oncoming locomotive? This week Gen. John Abizaid, who commands U.S. Central Command and is in overall charge of the war in Iraq, went before the Senate Armed Services Committee and said he thinks we turned a corner with the success of the Jan. 30 Iraqi national elections. Abizaid, a Middle East specialist who speaks Arabic, is arguably the smartest person wearing four stars in the Army. He thinks the Iraqi insurgency is now on the wane,...

The top US commander in Iraq has expressed concern about the ability of Iraqi forces to cope with security in the run-up to elections next month. The head of Central Command, General John Abizaid, said Iraqi troops did not have the training or experience to do the job without extra American help. At least 14 people died in bomb attacks in Baghdad and Mosul on Saturday. However, Gen Abizaid said border security had improved, with less infiltration by foreign insurgents. Need for stability Speaking at a regional conference on Gulf security in Bahrain, he called on Iraq's neighbours - in...

DOHA: A top US commander has warned Iran and other countries never to underestimate the US air and naval power, discounting concerns that the US forces are too tied down in Iraq to respond to challenges elsewhere. "To deter a nation state you should never underestimate the air and naval power of the United States," General John Abizaid, the commander of US forces in the Middle East, told AFP in a joint interview late on Friday. "Why the Iranians would want to move against us in an overt manner that would cause us to use our air or naval power...

DOHA, Qatar, Nov. 16, 2004 -- Reflecting on what he had just seen over a three-day visit to Iraq, U.S. Army Gen. John Abizaid said today that the enemy cannot militarily defeat U.S. troops or coalition forces fighting to free the country of terrorists and insurgents. "They can't beat us. They can only break our will. They can cause us to get tired and to go home," Abizaid said. "And we just need to make sure they understand that they are going to go down before we get tired." The battle of Fallujah waged over the past couple of weeks...

Former viceroy L. Paul Bremer did 14 months of hard service in Iraq, so it is a special shame to see that he is now squandering that legacy by blaming others for what's gone wrong there.... Mr. Bremer revised his remarks: "I believe that we currently have sufficient troop levels in Iraq." ...Trouble is, we haven't found a single other senior official involved in the war or its aftermath -- in or out of uniform -- who attests to Mr. Bremer's version of events. "I never heard him ask for more troops and he had many opportunities before the President...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26, 2004 – As January elections loom in Iraq, Army Gen. John Abizaid, head of U.S. Central Command, said today the country is headed in the right direction. "We are in fact moving in the direction that will allow Iraq to emerge as a democratic and representational state. I think that our military activities there have moved it ahead in a positive manner," Abizaid told host Tim Russert on "Meet the Press." "It's a tough fight, it's a hard fight. But we shouldn't lose heart because there are difficult times. We know that there will be fighting through...

WASHINGTON - The top U.S. military commander for Iraq said Sunday he expected flawed elections and much violence ahead of the voting scheduled for January. Gen. John Abizaid's assessment followed a week in which President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi spoke optimistically about the situation despite the beheadings of two more Americans and the deaths of dozens of people in car bombings. On Friday, the military said four Marines died in separate incidents, adding to a toll that has topped 1,000 since the U.S.-led invasion. Abizaid, commander of U.S. troops in the Middle East, said the elections will...

Centcom Commander General John Abizaid blasted Iraq war critics in Congress and the press on Sunday for focusing on isolated cases of bad news while ignoring the progress being made by the U.S. military in stabilizing the country. "The constant drumbeat in Washington of a war that is being lost, that can't be won, of a resistance that is out of control, simply do not square with the facts on the ground," Abizaid told NBC's "Meet the Press." "We need to look at what's happening in the region, as opposed to the reports of one or two journalists that happen...

Abizaid Pledges to Root Out, Destroy Zarqawi Terror Network By John D. BanusiewiczAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Sept. 22, 2004 – The U.S. general responsible for U.S. military operations from the Horn of Africa to Central and Southwest Asia pledged today to destroy "piece by piece" the terror network of fugitive Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command, met briefly with reporters along with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq John D. Negroponte following a closed Senate briefing. Zarqawi has a $10 million bounty on his head, and...

MANAMA, Bahrain – The top U.S. military commander in the Middle East on Tuesday blamed Syria and Iran for contributing to instability in Iraq and expressed regret over the withdrawal of Filipino peacekeepers from Iraq, warning that appeasing terrorism would backfire. Gen. John Abizaid also confirmed for the first time that former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was still in Iraq, being held by U.S. forces. Abizaid expressed concern that the Syrians were not doing enough to stop border infiltration, a longtime American accusation against Damascus. Syria has increased border security but has acknowledged it could not fully secure its long...