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Commander: UK may cut Iraq forces
Tuesday, August 22, 2006; Posted: 8:29 a.m. EDT (12:29 GMT)
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Britain may cut its force in Iraq in half by the middle of next year after handing over security responsibility for the south to Iraqis within nine months, a senior British commander said on Tuesday.
"These are all conditions-based, subject to a variety of factors, but in terms of the tactical plan and the competence of the Iraqi army, it is perfectly feasible," he said.
The 3,000 to 4,000-strong British force would remain in the Basra area after the handover "to protect our investment" in security in the mainly-Shi'ite south and show support for U.S. troops still facing security problems in other parts of Iraq.
The mainly Shiite south has been far more peaceful than Sunni-dominated and ethnically mixed provinces in the center of the country.
But Basra has seen a surge in violence over the past year, which British officials blame on rival Shiite factions battling for control of the city, which is at the heart of one of Iraq's main oil-producing regions.
The British commander said the main security concerns are local militia, such as offshoots of the Jaish al-Mehdi -- the Mehdi Army -- of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
"The mainstream Jaish al-Mehdi are not a particular worry, but there are rogue elements, some of them rather alarmingly close to government structures."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/22/britain.iraq.reut/index.html
Tuesday, August 22, 2006; Posted: 8:29 a.m. EDT (12:29 GMT)
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Britain may cut its force in Iraq in half by the middle of next year after handing over security responsibility for the south to Iraqis within nine months, a senior British commander said on Tuesday.
"These are all conditions-based, subject to a variety of factors, but in terms of the tactical plan and the competence of the Iraqi army, it is perfectly feasible," he said.
The 3,000 to 4,000-strong British force would remain in the Basra area after the handover "to protect our investment" in security in the mainly-Shi'ite south and show support for U.S. troops still facing security problems in other parts of Iraq.
The mainly Shiite south has been far more peaceful than Sunni-dominated and ethnically mixed provinces in the center of the country.
But Basra has seen a surge in violence over the past year, which British officials blame on rival Shiite factions battling for control of the city, which is at the heart of one of Iraq's main oil-producing regions.
The British commander said the main security concerns are local militia, such as offshoots of the Jaish al-Mehdi -- the Mehdi Army -- of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
"The mainstream Jaish al-Mehdi are not a particular worry, but there are rogue elements, some of them rather alarmingly close to government structures."
http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/22/britain.iraq.reut/index.html