Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Seattle Times
May 7, 2008 By Bradley Brooks, Associated Press
BAGHDAD — About 3,500 American soldiers are scheduled to leave Iraq in the coming weeks, the U.S. military announced, as part of the Pentagon's overall reduction in troop strength after last year's buildup.
The U.S. plans to trim its forces in Iraq to about 140,000 soldiers by the summer — from a peak of about 170,000 in October at the height of the troop buildup in Baghdad and surrounding areas.
The departing soldiers, part of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, will redeploy to Fort Benning, Ga., the military said.
The United States sent some 30,000 additional troops into Iraq last year to help stem growing violence. The troop increase, a truce by a key Shiite Muslim militia and the rise of Sunni fighters who allied with the United States in the battle against al-Qaida were credited with a sharp decrease in bloodshed during the past 10 months.
The soldiers are part of the third of five brigades scheduled to leave the country. The other two are expected to return to the United States by the end of July. There now are about 159,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
"The continued drawdown of surge brigades demonstrates continued progress in Iraq," Brig. Gen. Dan Allyn said in the statement released late Monday. "After July, commanders will assess our security posture for about 45 days and determine future force requirements based on these conditions-based assessments."
Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, has pushed for a so-called "pause" in further redeployment of U.S. troops.
Critics have called for a quicker withdrawal of U.S. soldiers, but commanders on the ground insist the slowdown is needed so a sharp increase in violence is not seen when U.S. forces leave.
Meanwhile, at least four civilians were killed overnight in the Baghdad Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City, which has seen fierce fighting between the Mahdi Army militia and U.S. and Iraqi troops.
Clashes in the sprawling slum of 2.5 million people that serves as a power base for radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi fighters have raged for five weeks, since the Iraqi government began a crackdown on the fighters in southern Iraq.
May 7, 2008 By Bradley Brooks, Associated Press
BAGHDAD — About 3,500 American soldiers are scheduled to leave Iraq in the coming weeks, the U.S. military announced, as part of the Pentagon's overall reduction in troop strength after last year's buildup.
The U.S. plans to trim its forces in Iraq to about 140,000 soldiers by the summer — from a peak of about 170,000 in October at the height of the troop buildup in Baghdad and surrounding areas.
The departing soldiers, part of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, will redeploy to Fort Benning, Ga., the military said.
The United States sent some 30,000 additional troops into Iraq last year to help stem growing violence. The troop increase, a truce by a key Shiite Muslim militia and the rise of Sunni fighters who allied with the United States in the battle against al-Qaida were credited with a sharp decrease in bloodshed during the past 10 months.
The soldiers are part of the third of five brigades scheduled to leave the country. The other two are expected to return to the United States by the end of July. There now are about 159,000 U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
"The continued drawdown of surge brigades demonstrates continued progress in Iraq," Brig. Gen. Dan Allyn said in the statement released late Monday. "After July, commanders will assess our security posture for about 45 days and determine future force requirements based on these conditions-based assessments."
Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, has pushed for a so-called "pause" in further redeployment of U.S. troops.
Critics have called for a quicker withdrawal of U.S. soldiers, but commanders on the ground insist the slowdown is needed so a sharp increase in violence is not seen when U.S. forces leave.
Meanwhile, at least four civilians were killed overnight in the Baghdad Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City, which has seen fierce fighting between the Mahdi Army militia and U.S. and Iraqi troops.
Clashes in the sprawling slum of 2.5 million people that serves as a power base for radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi fighters have raged for five weeks, since the Iraqi government began a crackdown on the fighters in southern Iraq.