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October 7, 2008 3:01:18 PM CDT

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Diplomats Raise Stink Over Iraq Assignments

Posted Oct 31, 07 5:02 PM CDT in US 

(Newser) – Foreign service officers vented anger today over the State Department's plan to require some to serve in Iraq, chewing out their director in a meeting. One senior officer called the “directed assignments”—which could force diplomats to take postings in Baghdad or outlying provinces—a “potential death sentence”; another cited a survey showing few officers thought Condoleezza Rice was “fighting for them."

Program director Harry Thomas accepted responsibility for the late notification of the new directive, which won’t force anyone into a war zone until next year. But the hostility at the town-hall-style event provoked a strong response from Thomas, who retorted, “Don’t you or anybody else stand there and tell me I don’t care about my colleagues. I am insulted.”

Source Associated Press

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Iraqis walk on a partially sealed off road leading to the heavily guarded Green Zone   (Getty Images)
A partial view of the Iraqi capital Baghdad as seen from a United States Army helicopter, on route from Baghdad International Airport to the heavily-fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Tuesday Oct. 2, 2007....   (Associated Press)
A picture shows the new US embassy complex, still under construction.   (Getty Images)
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice speaks during the dedication of the George C. Marshall Conference Center, Friday, Oct. 26, 2007, at the State Department in Washington. Marshall, who was Secretary...   (Associated Press)
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Iraq  • Condoleezza Rice  • State Department  • Green Zone  • town hall meeting  • foreign service


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