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H16082

Headlines : "War on Terror"

Summary:

As a Brit I have to say that one of the few sensible things Gordon Brown has done in his brief tenure is to scale back operations in Iraq. Of course he would have us believe it is all part of the master plan. Our troops would have an Overwatch role, whatever that is.

Now a Commons armed forces committee reports that we are not fulfilling our role in establishing stability. These warlord people appear to have taken over. It’s not too much of a shocker given that whatever British troops remain are huddled round the airport waiting for the plane home.

[Posted By Watson]

By Ben Russell
Republished from The Independent

Basra unstable shock

Warlords and criminal gangs dominate Basra amid growing concern that British forces have failed to create the conditions needed for political and economic reconstruction, warns an influential committee of MPs.

Gordon Brown’s decision to cut troop numbers to just 2,500 next Spring could leave the Army unable to do more than defend itself, putting the value of its presence in Iraq “open to question”, the MPs will say today.

The report by members of the all-party Commons defence committee welcomed falls in the number of attacks on British troops since they withdrew from the centre of Basra in the summer. But they noted that attacks on civilians in Basra had not declined and said security in the city was only maintained by warlords.

“Violence in Basra Province continues to undermine the development of civil society,” the report said.

[end excerpt]

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