Country needs you, Iraq tells Saddam's officers

[ECH1969]

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The Iraqi government issued a plea on Wednesday to former officers in Saddam Hussein's military who were sacked by the U.S. occupiers after his fall to return to the army as it battles a fierce Sunni Arab insurgency.

In a statement, issued on the eve of the main annual Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, Defense Minister Saadoun Dulaimi, one of the few Sunnis in government, invited former officers with the ranks of major, captain and lieutenant to return to the forces.

"Those who wish to rejoin the new Iraqi army to serve the precious homeland should go to recruitment centers opened around the country ... for medical procedures and interviews," he said, listing six centers around the country where they can register.

The plight of the hundreds of thousands of unemployed former soldiers has been a rallying point for Sunni Arab complaints that the ruling Shi'ites and Kurds are neglecting their interests.

http://today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-11-02T142316Z_01_SIB251743_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAQ-ARMY.xml

[bemildred]

1. I think my brain just locked up.

:banghead::banghead::banghead:

[geek tragedy]

2. Another one of the Keystone Kops' brilliant maneuvers backfires. eom

[Hobarticus]

3. Weren't the majority of his officer corps Sunnis?

If so, why would they come and fight their own?

It's morning in Bush Bizarro World.

[Moderator]

4. kick

[RamboLiberal]

5. NYT: Iraqi Government Asks Hussein's Officers to Return to Military

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/02/international/middleeast/02cnd-iraq.html?ei=5094&en=00631d575cf29cbe&hp=&ex=1130994000&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print

The Iraqi government issued a broad call today for the return of officers from the disbanded army of Saddam Hussein. The move was a major step aimed at trying to drain the insurgency of military recruits and bolstering the nascent Iraqi force being trained by the Americans.

The Defense Ministry said in a written statement that all ex-officers who had held the rank of major or lower could go to recruitment centers in six cities across Iraq throughout November.

The ministry has been quietly recruiting ex-officers for more than a year, but the announcement marks the first time it has put out a widespread call for the return of former soldiers. American and Iraqi officials say a core part of the insurgency, which has grown stronger and more sophisticated since the start of the guerilla war, is made up of members of Mr. Hussein's military.

The move by the Defense Ministry is also the most public repudiation yet of the American policy to disband the old Iraqi Army, which was instituted by L. Paul Bremer III, the former American proconsul, within days of his arrival in Iraq in May 2003. Many American commanders and military analysts have said that the dissolving of the 400,000-strong Iraqi Army fueled the insurgency, which began gathering momentum in the fall of 2003, and deprived the country of a force that could help restore order.

In its statement, the Defense Ministry said it "calls on the officers in the former Iraqi Army who wish to return to service in the new Iraqi Army to serve their precious country."

[Jacobin]

6. Bwaahahahahaha

Next they'll pardon Saddam and let him put the lid back on IraqNam.

All for fucking nothing.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

7. What can I say, that hasn't already been said? n/t

[The_Casual_Observer]

8. Does this include the "Elite Republican Guard"?

[daleo]

10. To be renamed "The Elite Puppet Guard"

This seems pretty desperate. These ex-officers are more likely to see it as a sign that their side is winning.

[FiveGoodMen]

11. "...and after one MORE month of carpet bombing

and no response from Saddam, it when from the Elite Republican Guard to the Republican Guard ... to the Republicans made this shit up about there being guards out there."

-- Bill Hicks

[The_Casual_Observer]

13. Did I mention the dreaded "Fedaheen Saddam"

:scared:

[stray cat]

9. Sounds like a decent idea, disbanding it was a disaster

[DoYouEverWonder]

17. Why don't we just give Saddam back his country?

at least he knew how to maintain law and order.

[Kolesar]

12. If this were a game of "Risk"

We would have lost North America already and be holed up in the last parcel of South America with two cards and nine armies.

[Lexingtonian]

14. Now all they need is their old C-in-C back!

It's painfully sad, isn't it, that we're going to end up with a wrecked Iraq, a wrecked American reputation, more than 2,000 Americans killed and 40,000 Iraqis dead (and 100,000 wounded), $300 plus billion of American taxpayer money spent.

All of that in order to kill one old man.

Priceless indeed.

[Disturbed]

15. Disbanding the Iraqi Army and..

allowing them to go home with their weapons was a major screwup. On top of that the stupid Bush Admin. left ammo dumps open for the taking. The incompetence of the Bush Admin. almost exceeds their arrogance.

[Barrett808]

16. Belies the fact that Mukhabarat have already been quietly reintegrated

...and are conducting brutal counterinsurgency operations using the old ways. Saddam's ways. Why not reconstitute the old army as well?

[madmark]

18. So the insurgents can join the Iraqi Army, which would be fine

except they are going to be in a much better position to kill our guys.

[rodeodance]

19. so will they be officers or just boots on the ground?

[Roy]

20. Maybe I'm a dummy but......

Isn't this an invitation for the insurgents to sign up to kill american troops from the inside with weapons issued by the american military?

Not to mention gaining inside information on american movements and other intelligence?

[enigma000]

21. Depends how committed the former officers are

Hardline Baath members and Sunni nationalists would use the opportunity to cause chaos and attack Americans. I'm sure many, if not most, would just welcome their jobs back and to join the officer corp again. Besides, they can do background checks.

These are probably young junior officers, without deep seated political affiliation. They have more to gain from re-entering the Iraqi military and waiting for the Americans to leave than risking their lives fighting against their own soldiers.