OF4-9/25/06 9:25AM IRAQ'S DIVIDED ARMY
The Osgood File. Sponsored in part by the beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel in Florida and by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Wherever in the world you compete, Michigan can give you the upper hand. I'm Charles Osgood. Some. not all but SOME American soldiers in Iraq will tell you that the IA's Iraqi Army soldiers serving alongside them seem more loyal to the local MILITIAS than they are to the government. That could be a problem when the time comes. as it eventually will. for the US troops to leave. The story after this for the beaches of Fort Myers and Sanibel in Florida.
If you ask the senior commanders in Iraq about the performance of the Iraqi troops working with. and presumably learning from the American forces there. they'll tell you they are learning and are getting better. But Iraqi soldiers were nearby when concertina wire barriers that was supposed to bolster defensive positions near Sadr City was dragged away right under their noses. It happened repeatedly. And when an American Sgt messaged his senior officers," Suggest we fire the IA's and get them out of the way". the reply was "nothing we can do."
The speculation is that the missing barriers were dragged off to strengthen defenses in a sprawling Shiite neighborhood that's a stronghold of the anti American cleric Muqtada al Sadr, whose militia is one of the biggest of the 23 known Shiite militias in Iraq. He also controls 30 of the 275 seats in parliament and FIVE cabinet posts. One problem seems to be that many of the Iraqi soldiers on duty in that area have been recruited from Shiite neighborhoods of Baghdad. That means the soldiers grew up in a society where respect for religion runs deeper. than for government institutions, as Antonio Castaneda of the Associated Press puts it. He says one immediate solution would be to bring in more units from outside Baghdad although many Iraqi troops refuse to serve away from HOME. Not very promising, is it?
Our broadcasts can be found as Mp3s and Podcasts on theosgoodfile.Com.
I'm Charles Osgood on the CBS Radio Network.
The Osgood File. September 25, 2006 |
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