U.S. Forces in Iraq to Expand Blockades

[Barrett808]

WASHINGTON — The United States will recruit more Iraqis to gather information about opposition fighters and may increase security measures to protect troops, President Bush said as he outlined ways the military was switching tactics to deal with a rise in deadly attacks.

"We're constantly looking at the enemy and adjusting," the president said at a Rose Garden news conference Tuesday. "Iraq is dangerous, and it's dangerous because terrorists want us to leave, and we're not leaving."

Bush and Pentagon officials said Americans may install more security barriers and take other measures to "harden" potential targets after suicide bombings killed more than three dozen people in Baghdad on Monday. More importantly, the United States will step up its efforts to involve Iraqis in the hunt for Saddam Hussein loyalists and foreign fighters, Bush said.

"We've got to make sure that not only we harden targets, but that we get actionable intelligence to intercept the missions before they begin," the president said. "That means more Iraqis involved in the intelligence-gathering systems in their country so that they are active participants in securing the country from further harm."

But a scathing internal report on the Army's information gathering in Iraq found intelligence specialists on the ground unprepared for their jobs and with little ability to analyze what they hear.

The Army report found the service's intelligence specialists in Iraq "did not appear to be prepared for tactical assignments" and often exhibited "weak intelligence briefing skills" and "very little to no analytical skills."

The criticism came in a report by a four-member team from the Center for Army Lessons Learned, the Army's agency for pushing commanders to learn from mistakes. The team visited Army units in Iraq during the first two weeks of June and released its report on an Army Web site last week.

(more)

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wire/ats-ap_top11oct28,1,7019613.story?coll=la-ap-topnews-headlines

(note: headline has changed)

[Neutrino]

1. Hiding behind miles of razorwire, and cement blockades

that make Beirut look tame. Bremer, in his starched white shirt and
desert boots--hiding from the people that have been "lovingly"
"liberated"? Can this whole preposterous travesty get any more
ridiculous?

[atreides1]

2. So Now...

...the Iraqi resistance know what to look for, and will adapt.

Smooth move George, why not tell them your diaper size too.

[Spazito]

3. LOL

thanks for the chuckle re diaper size.