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FALLUJAH, Iraq, Sept. 12 -- The outgoing U.S. Marine Corps general in charge of western Iraq said Sunday he opposed a Marine assault on militants in the volatile city of Fallujah in April and the subsequent decision to withdraw from the city and turn over control to a security force of former Iraqi soldiers.
That security force, known as the Fallujah Brigade, was formally disbanded last week. Not only did the brigade fail to combat militants, it actively aided them, surrendering weapons, vehicles and radios to the insurgents, according to senior Marine officers. Some brigade members even participated in attacks on Marines ringing the city, the officers said.
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The comments by Lt. Gen. James T. Conway, made shortly after he relinquished command of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force on Sunday, amounted to a stinging broadside against top U.S. military and civilian leaders who ordered the Fallujah invasion and withdrawal. His statements also provided the most detailed explanation -- and justification -- of Marine actions in Fallujah this spring, which have been widely criticized for increasing insurgent activity in the city and turning it into a "no-go" zone for U.S. troops.
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He would not say where the order to attack originated, only that he received an order from his superior at the time, Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the overall commander of U.S. forces in Iraq. Some senior U.S. officials in Iraq have said the command originated in the White House.
I don't spend much time here criticizing specific military tactics, though it would be nice if our civilian leaders could articulate a clear political goal of our various military incursions which didn't exist mostly in fairy land.
...let met just add that at this point is seems pretty clear that while we're the only real force capable of providing "security" in Iraq, it's also the case that our presence is the primary cause of "insecurity." I wish I had an easy solution to this, but it does seem to be a bit of a Catch-22. We can't put into place a security force while we're there because they'll be seen as fighting on our side (or, as happens, they'll take our weapons and use them against us), but we can't leave until there's a security force in place.
My advice - invest heavily in Egyptian cotton and gin futures.