'We were not forced out,' Britain tells Iraqi town

[Barrett808]

AMARA, Iraq (AFP) - British forces in Iraq have sought to convince citizens of this restive southern city that their recent evacuation of a nearby military camp had not been forced by insurgent attacks.

Last month British troops left Camp Abu Naji outside Amara that had come under repeated mortar attack from Shiite militia groups in the city.

Immediately after the coalition forces pulled out, gangs of looters moved in and stripped the barrack blocks bare, carting off roofing and airconditioners.

Shiite gunmen linked to the Mahdi Army of radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr celebrated the British withdrawal as a victory, boasting they had liberated Amara from an occupying force.

British commanders, however, insisted that the troops had instead been redeployed for another mission in rural areas near Iraq's border with Iran in order to prevent weapons smuggling.

(more)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060906/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestbritainamara

[Botany]

1. and Custer did not have some troubles w/ his tactics

This war is lost ..... time to get out now!

[The_Casual_Observer]

2. Sounds like the "Peace with honor" retreat from Vietnam.

[NeedleCast]

3. From the "Pompey: How To Lose a War" Series.

It was a "strategic retreat," much like Pompey's retreat from Rome.