More troops sent to Iraq
In a politically self serving way the Shadow defence secretary Bernard Jenkin argued that while the deployment of further troops to Iraq was “a necessary step”, it was also “a humiliation” for a government.
Prior to the war in Iraq the Iraqi government made it clear that they knew they couldn’t win the “big battle” game but would instead bog the US lead forces down, slowly chiipping away at their moral by guerilla type warfare until they eventually gave up and left Iraq.
So certainly alot of the current trouble in iraq is heavily influenced by this pre-war declaration of intention. In fact analysts say Iraqi guerilla tactics have been gleaned from British and Americans wars in Vietnam, Somalia and Yugoslavia.
From Vietnam, for example, the Iraqis learnt how to keep civilians separated from coalition forces and deprive them of aid (illustrated by the withdrawl of the majority of humaritarian aid agencies from iraq last week).
And from Somalia - where 18 American soldiers were killed in a battle immortalised in the film Black Hawk Down - the Iraqis hope to draw Americans into damaging urban battles.
However, The growing resistance partly reflects rising frustration and anger at electricity and water shortages, aggravating chaotic and intolerable conditions. It is also a reaction to the provocative weapons searches and arrests carried out by US forces, often involving fire-fights and the deaths of unfortunate bystanders. In July, over 700 ‘criminals and Baath loyalists’ were arrested – hundreds, including children, were thrown into primitive, make-shift jails – including many innocent people. (It was punishment without trial, Guardian, 15 August) The US commander, General Ricardo Sanchez admitted (8 August) that his iron-fist policy had alienated Iraqis, and promised a change in tactics. Armed clashes and killings have continued unabated
Iraq was NEVER going to be a quick and easy victory - in every conflict the British army since 1980 we still have troops in place - Falklands, Bosnia, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan to name a few. To expect anything less from a country of 25million people, as the Shadow defence secretary seems to think, is stupidity belong belief.
Yes our troops have run into difficulties but the fact that british tropps are being deployed with specific objectives (bbc news) indicates that the army believes - rightly or wrongly - that the difficulties faced in Iraq are solvable and that we are not going in blindly in vain hope that we can overwhelm an enemy we cannot see.
At the last gulf war I believed we should have marched on to Baghdad - that didn’t happen - but it would be hypocrisy of me now to criticise a course of action which i believed in - and still do believe was the right thing to do.