Debate Heats Up on Rehiring Former Iraq Army

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20031025/pl_nm/iraq_wolfowitz_dc&cid=615&ncid=1473

TIKRIT (Reuters) - As it seeks to accelerate Iraq's transition from American control, the U.S.-led occupation authority is rehiring fired Iraqi army personnel, but some military officers said on Friday Washington should recall whole units.

Visiting Iraq for the second time in three months, U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz stressed the importance of speeding up the formation of a new Iraqi army, police force, border guard and civil defense corps.

He also questioned why the Iraqi civil defense corps is projected to have 22,000 personnel instead of 100,000.

While asserting that "there's no prejudice against hiring officers of the former army if they have clean records," Wolfowitz and two top aides were cool to suggestions the United States may have to go beyond hiring individual former soldiers and officers of Saddam Hussein's old army.

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[cthrumatrix]

1. It's either this or a "draft" .... and at some point in time ...Iraq has

to fill this need.

Those that say 'wait' ... fine... send your son/daughter in the meantime and see if that changes your mind.

PERHAPS .... just maybe... there would be less violence against Iraq troops then American... and provide time to get this quagimire via shrub under control.

[NNN0LHI]

2. One small problem

I may be wrong? But I think these are the thugs we are liberating the Iraqis from. How high in command should the rehiring go? Perhaps if we rehire the Iraqi commander in chief and put him back in charge we can get out of there really quick. What do you think?

Don

[LittleApple81]

3. This bind the US finds itself in is all the misAdministration's fault:

They are now in the position of having to justify hiring whatever part of "Sadam's Army" and "Sadam's police" they did not kill off to control the population they supposedly liberated from the same army and police. Isn't this a peach?

[cliss]

4. Once again, they show us

how inept they truly are. You can just "feel" them writing the script as they go along. Nothing is really thought through to the end, though. Every option they explore turns to dust before their eyes. First it was the Hindus, they said no. Next it was Japanese troops. They have since backed out. Next, they tried Turkey. The Iraqi governing council threw a stick in the spokes on that one.

NOW we're back to home base again, looking at the Iraqis theselves. Some quick problems: the insurgents have made it clear they will kill anyone who fights on the side of the US. Iraqi police and civilians have been killed over this. So there is going to be a huge image problem with this newest "plan". Also, do they really want Iraqis to point guns at, harass and kill EACH OTHER?

And, as Don points out, who are they, anyway?