Stories related to: David Petraeus

The leadership of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the rebel group based in northern Iraq that the United States considers a terrorist organization, has spoken out to warn of resistance to any Turkish cross-border incursion. In a report by a pro-Kurdish news agency, a leading PKK commander warned that his group would fight not only the Turkish army but also any US and Kurdish Iraqi parties that aid Turkish efforts. More »

David Petraeus is returning to Washington this week to help select the next generation of generals, an unusual move highlighting the Army’s desperation to inject Petraeus-style unconventional thinkers into its leadership, the Washington Post reports. “It's unprecedented for the commander of an active theater to be brought back to head something like a brigadier generals board,” said one retired general. More »

The US is slowly beginning to reduce the number of troops deployed in Iraq, the first real test of whether the surge has been effective, the AP says. One of 20 combat brigades is heading home now, and another four will leave by July, dropping the number of troops in Iraq from 167,000 to between 140,000 and 145,000. More »

President Bush marked the fifth Veterans Day since the beginning of the war in Iraq at an emotional ceremony at an American Legion Post in Texas where four fallen servicemen were honored. Bush was expected to use the opportunity to scold Congress for not sending him a veterans spending bill, but instead hailed the conflict in Iraq as a noble cause. More »

More US troops have died in Iraq this year than in any other since the conflict began, the AP reports. The 2007 casualty total stands at 852, with the increase due largely to the surge and new counterinsurgency tactics, which took troops out of fortified bases and into communities. The death toll has fallen recently, however, from 84 in August to 39 in October. More »

Iraq’s biggest dam is vulnerable to breaking and flooding the city of Mosul, killing up to 500,000 and flooding the Tigris River, the BBC reports. A US report today warns that an ongoing $27 million reconstruction project has not fixed the dam's flaws. Poor construction, incorrect parts, and possible fraud have marred repairs, the report said. More »

Al Qaeda is losing ground in Baghdad, Gen. David Petraeus said today, even as the group showed its fangs by abducting 10 opposition tribal leaders. “Its presence has been significantly reduced,” Petraeus said, but cautioned that al Qaeda was still “dangerous and very lethal.” Gunmen, meanwhile, abducted seven Sunni and three Shiite sheiks returning from an anti-Qaeda strategy conference. More »

The US stopped Saddam's defense chief from hanging last month, claiming Iraqi outrage inspired the pardon — but insiders say that Sultan Hashem earned his reprieve by thwarting Iraqi attacks during the 2003 US-led invasion. Officials tell Time that Hashem’s execution would be a “gross miscarriage of justice” since his work “saved American lives.” More »

The British and American defense secretaries say the US was consulted before Britain halved its troops in Iraq, the Los Angeles Times reports, and they agreed southern Iraq was secure enough for the withdrawal. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the withdrawal was coordinated with US commander Gen. David Petraeus, despite concerns over the cuts from some senior US officials. More »

The US Marine Corps is lobbying to be withdrawn from Iraq and instead be given the lead role in Afghanistan, reports the New York Times . The move would leave the Army with primary responsibility for the increasingly unpopular war in Iraq. Supporters believe it would allow the branches to operate more efficiently in operations that are straining resources.  More »

Iran's continued activity helping to supply battling factions in Iraq could be the biggest long-term challenge to peace in the war-torn nation, General David Petraeus tells CNN. The head of allied forces in Iraq emphasized that al-Qaeda is the No. 1 enemy to beat. "Al-Qaeda remains the wolf closest to the sled," he said. But "there's absolutely no question that Iran is providing"  advanced rocket-propelled grenades to militias, he added. More »

Sunni insurgents have launched an assassination campaign aimed at  Iraqi police and officials of the Interior Ministry to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, reports the New York Times . Eight police officers, including a police chief, have been killed and 30 injured. A provincial governor  survived a suicide bombing when five bodyguards sacrificed their own lives to shield him from the blast. More »

For military analysts, a shooting victim in Iraq hasn’t necessarily fallen prey to sectarian violence. Instead, teams analyze each killing for signs it was ethnically motivated, compiling statistics the Bush administration has relied on to show progress in Iraq. Victims who were tortured, shot once in the head, or taken to body dumps are included; others are not. More »

The public editor of the New York Times slammed the newspaper yesterday for violating its own policies when it ran the now notorious "General Betray Us" ad. The ad, placed by MoveOn.org, was a personal attack on General Petraeus, which is prohibited by the Times standards for acceptable ads, the editor wrote in a column in the paper. More »

After beating down talk of a troop draw down, President Bush will ask Congress next week for nearly $200 billion to fund the war next year—making 2008 the most expensive year yet. The administration had originally sought $147.5 billion, but now seeks an additional $47 billion to fund equipment upgrades and maintain the troop surge, the LA Times reports. More »

Ambassador Ryan Crocker says the US needs to get moving on admitting Iraqi refugees. In a State Department memo titled "Iraqi Refugee Processing: Can We Speed It Up?", Crocker writes that thousands of desperate Iraqis are facing bottlenecks to their resettlement, and that at the present rate it would take two years to admit the 10,000 refugees referred to the US by the United Nations. More »

The US is hyping an Iranian threat to Iraq to deflect attention away from its mistakes, Iran’s ambassador to Iraq told CNN, again denying allegations Tehran is attacking American troops trying to stabilize the country. “US security plans for Iraq have not succeeded,” Hassan Kazemi-Qomi said. The administration is accusing others to “cover up their own failed plans.” More »

Democrats in Congress are pinning their hopes on what they believe is the most politically palatable way to speed the withdrawal of troops from Iraq in the wake of Gen. Petraeus’ report last week. A bill mandating that troops be allowed to spend the same amount of time at home as on their most recent tour before redeploying looks close to winning enough GOP support to pass, backers tell the New York Times. More »

On the heels of President Bush's announcement of limited drawbacks in Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressed confidence yesterday that a bigger pullout would be possible. Gates said yesterday that he hopes for more cuts than Bush and Gen. David Petraeus were willing to commit to, bringing troop levels down to 100,000 by the end of 2008, the Washington Post reports. More »

Iraq has made "satisfactory" progress on only half of its 18 benchmarks for success, the White House told Congress today, hours after President Bush said the country’s advancements merited a strong US military presence there. Since the July progress report, only one benchmark—reintegrating Baathists into the government—has been upgraded from unsatisfactory to satisfactory, the AP reports. More »