BAGHDAD, Oct. 2, 2007
1,000 U.K. Troops Coming Home From Iraq
British PM Announces Cut On Visit To Baghdad; Iraqis To Take Over Basra By December
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British Prime Minister Gordon Brown talks with British soldiers on Oct. 2, 2007 in Baghdad, Iraq. (Getty Images/Peter Macdiarmid)
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British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, left, shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, right, in the heavily-fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq Tuesday Oct. 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
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An Iraqi policeman stands near a damaged vehicle after a suicide car bomber killed three Iraqi policemen outside the police headquarters in the southern city of Basra, Sept. 25, 2007. Britain's leader was in Iraq on Tuesday, Oct. 2, to discuss cutting U.K. troop levels in Basra province. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jurani)
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A total of 64 American forces died in September. Iraqi civilian deaths fell from 1,975 in August to at least 988 last month, a decline of 50 percent, according to an AP tally. (AP Photo/Ed Betz)
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An Iraqi police officer guards two detainees who had been arrested when they were trying to launch a Katusha rocket against Kirkuk airport about 180 miles north of Baghdad on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2007. (AP Photo)
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Interactive American Heroes Profiles of U.S. soldiers who've died in Iraq, a look at the war's toll and pictures of mourning.
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Interactive Battle For Iraq The government, the insurgency, key players, background and photos.
Brown, on an unannounced visit to Baghdad, said 1,000 more British troops would leave Iraq before year's end.
The U.K. leader arrived in Iraq Tuesday morning to meet his counterpart and discuss troop levels with senior British, American and Iraqi commanders.
He was to meet later with U.S. Commander David Petraeus before flying to Basra to meet with his forces and military leaders in the oil-rich region in the deep south of Iraq.
"We are prepared to take over security of Basra within two months and we will," al-Maliki said, after the meeting in his Green Zone office. "Basra will be one of the provinces where Iraqi forces will completely take over security."
Brown confirmed al-Maliki's plans and said, "as we move to overwatch, we can move down to 4,500." He spoke at the Green Zone residence of Britain's top commander in Iraq Gen. Bill Rollo.
Brown said any further decision on British troop withdrawals would be made next year.
Troops vacated their last remaining downtown Basra base last month, accelerating calls from the British public to drawdown some forces.
Britain has about 5,500 soldiers based mainly at an air base on the fringes of the southern city of Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, 340 miles southeast of Baghdad.
Brown, making his first visit to Iraq as British leader, was expected to address the Parliament in London next week on the future of Britain's role in the war-torn country.
Brown aims for Britain to focus on economic development as its security role reduces and planned to question al-Maliki on the progress of political reconciliation, a British official said before the meeting, on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of talks.
Despite ongoing tensions between rival Shiite factions in Basra, the city had avoided the chaos some predicted would ensue after British troops left their last city center base, the official said.
Britain's defense ministry said rocket and mortar attacks on their base at Basra airport had fallen sharply in the last month, with only a few attempted strikes.
But Karim al-Miahi, the head of the Basra security committee and a member in the provincial council said the British forces' withdrawal from the area, "has had a negative effect on security in the city. Iraqi forces still are not able to control the situation which has deteriorated over the past three weeks. There has been an increase in assassinations of police and religious leaders."
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Throughout the city (Basra) violence remains at about the levels before the British troops left.
Abdul-Maunim Karim, Retired Iraqi sailorAl-Miahi conceded that, "for the areas around the British base, the situation is more stable. Shelling there has stopped."
Abdul-Maunim Karim, 50, a retired sailor who lives near the presidential palace now vacated by the British, agreed that area there was quieter because the shelling had stopped. "But throughout the city violence remains at about the levels before the British troops left."
Advisers to Brown rejected reports the leader had already decided to withdraw between 2,000 and 3,000 troops by the end of the year, but acknowledged he is studying a range of options.
In other developments:
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- ***** Stop The War & Corporate Corruption *****
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Paul Is America''s Last Hope! - Reply to this comment
- READ THE FINE PRINT:
"Despite ongoing tensions between rival Shiite factions in Basra, the city had avoided the chaos some predicted would ensue after British troops left their last city center base, the official said. Britain''s defense ministry said rocket and mortar attacks on their base at Basra airport had fallen sharply in the last month, with only a few attempted strikes."
GUESS WHAT ?? Just Like Vietnam. When the aggressor, war-mongerin'', civillian-killin'' foreign occupying nation LEAVES, peace can finally ARRIVE. - Reply to this comment
- hungary1986:
This War is about much more that funneling billions to the politically well-connected US corporations.
It is also about dominating the region with permanent US military bases, so we can encourage ongoing Iraqi outrage to fuel the endless war, and so we can protect "American Interests" (that is, American CORPORATE Interests) by securing the Iraqi Oil.
That is why corporate-owned Democrats won''t leave Iraq either. They will talk about "ending the War" or "bringing the troops home", but they don''t mean "all the troops". No the sleazy spineless complicit Democrats will never leave Iraq, just like Bush won''t ever leave Iraq. - Reply to this comment
- Amazing, that some 37-Years Ago, they planned this whole thing, this IRAQ-Middle East thing they have going. What guys you liked the script so much and the way it was directed, you thought you''d actually play it out in real life ? You know who you are, and I know who you are, now we both know,Question is, should I clue everybody else in on your Game,1975, just how many times did you guys have to watch this thing, to get the nerve and the stupidity to actually enact this scenerio, It was Writtin and Directed well, you guys are following it to a "T'', almost as it was wrote, and when a certain somebody up North unexpectedly found out about your Game, you Fired them from the agency, discredited them, along with how many others? How Many have had to "Retire" permanently, or never be seen again, for your Pathetic Game ? Did ya think somebody out here wouldn''t actually Discover what your up to? Many of You have way too much time on your hands to be investing in scenerios like this, and playing them out. I hope it ends ebruptly as it started, sincerely the "CONDOR" !
- Reply to this comment
- Posts don''t sound like it pat. Sometimes. Do I owe you an apology? Please don''t be a killer. You alerted me wit your post. "coarse" is spelled (of) course. and more.................................like nothin yet...30-06
- Reply to this comment
- (CBS/AP) Iraq will take over security from British troops in Basra province within two months, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told reporters Tuesday after meeting with Britain''''''''s Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Brown, on an unannounced visit to Baghdad, said 1,000 more British troops would leave Iraq before year''''''''s end.
Off coarse,
Britons need to get out of Iraq. Their job is done. Their job was to remove SECULAR SADDAM from power, whose FOREIGN MINISTER "TRAQI AZIZ" was a CATHOLIC and had females in the governmet, and to give power of IRAQ to those EXTREMIST SHIA ISLAMIC RADICALS, in the name of DEMOCRACY, who believe in killing all the NON-MUSLIMS in the MIDDLE EAST for the return of their FINAL TWELFTH "IMAM MEHDI".
No wonder why Iranian President laughs on the STUPIDITY of PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIANS.
ISLAMIC RADICALS didn''t have to spend a SINGLE PENNY or a SINGLE BULLET to achieve their goal. It was all done by the US and BRITISH TAX DOLLARS and the US and BRITISH SOLDIERS'' LIVES.
America and UK are very close to be MILTARILY and FINANCIALLY BANKRUPT, whereas ISLAMIC RADICALS are swimming in money due to increase in the OIL PRICES as a result of ongoing war and getting more RECRUITS then ever to give their lives to destroy United States. - Reply to this comment
- patriotic9 you gotta be israeli/palestinianor somewhere in the me. How''''s you find this site" educated in my country? Wow! change yer handle.
Posted by drummer94 at 05:37 PM : Oct 02, 2007
I am in the United States but you ain''t seen no''n yet. - Reply to this comment
- patriotic9 you gotta be israeli/palestinianor somewhere in the me. How''s you find this site" educated in my country? Wow! change yer handle.
- Reply to this comment
- Too bad the US soldiers don''''t get to come home. You can thank Bush for his complete failure plan ANY exit strategy. Now he just wants to hand the mess he created off to the NEXT president.
Posted by MyIDonCBS at 05:11 PM : Oct 02, 2007
There was never an exit strategy, because they never want to exit. The entire purpose of this war, is to funnel trillions of tax payer dollars into the industrial military complex.
That is why there are billions of dollars in no bid contracts for Haliburton, Blackwater, Northrupp-Grumann, etc, etc.
That is why Bush is farming out so many jobs that used to be controlled by the government - like that makes sense.
If you need 3 people to provide security for a US ambassador, why would you pay a private company $400,000 dollars a year, when you could assign 3 MP''s that are making well under $100,000 combined? Because the entire object of the Iraq invasion, is to funnel money to the contractors.
Now that all of these companies have made billions, they can afford to hire the biggest and best lobbyists, which pretty much ensures that we''ll never leave. - Reply to this comment
- (CBS/AP) Iraq will take over security from British troops in Basra province within two months, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told reporters Tuesday after meeting with Britain''''s Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Brown, on an unannounced visit to Baghdad, said 1,000 more British troops would leave Iraq before year''''s end.
Off coarse,
Britons need to get out of Iraq. Their job is done. Their job was to remove SECULAR SADDAM from power, whose FOREIGN MINISTER "TRAQI AZIZ" was a CATHOLIC and had females in the governmet, and to give power of IRAQ to those EXTREMIST SHIA ISLAMIC RADICALS, in the name of DEMOCRACY, who believe in killing all the NON-MUSLIMS in the MIDDLE EAST for the return of their FINAL TWELFTHE "IMAM MEHDI".
No wonder why Iranian President laughs on the STUPIDITY of PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIANS.
ISLAMIC RADICALS didn''''t have to spend a SINGLE PENNY or a SINGLE BULLET to achieve their goal. It was all done by the US and BRITISH TAX DOLLARS and the US and BRITISH SOLDIERS'''' LIVES.
America and UK are very close to be MILTARILY and FINANCIALLY BANKRUPT, whereas ISLAMIC RADICALS are swimming in money due to increase in the OIL PRICES as a result of ongoing war and getting more RECRUITS then ever to give their lives to destroy United States. - Reply to this comment
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