In the besieged city marines look uneasily to joint patrols in the city

[JoFerret]

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/27/international/middleeast/27FALL.html


FALLUJA, Iraq, April 26 — As Iraqi insurgents and marines fought a pitched battle here for several hours on Monday, marine officers said they felt a sense of grim foreboding about the prospect of joint patrols with Iraqis in the city.

In the battle, American officials said, one marine was killed along with at least eight insurgents.

On Sunday, the Coalition Provisional Authority announced an extension of an uneasy cease-fire in hopes of averting an all-out marine assault on the besieged city. As a means of reasserting control, two generals and a representative of the provisional authority agreed with Falluja civic leaders to resume joint patrols by the marines and the American-trained security forces known as the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps on Tuesday.

On Monday, that date slipped to Thursday.

Privately, marine officers express concerns about the prospect of joint patrols. Not only is the effectiveness of the Iraqi security forces in doubt, but so is their loyalty. During the previous weeks of fighting, they dropped out of sight.

.... "This isn't a cease-fire," snorted a marine officer angrily. "Its a chance for them to regroup."

This view appeared to be borne out by the fighting on Monday.
<more>

[rolodomo]

1. This is ridiculous!!

Now that the CPA has screwed everything up, its time throw the Marines into the breach on some fantasy land "joint patrol" mission ? This is very sad leadership.

[Jacobin]

9. Vietnam redux

same old shit

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

2. Can someone please explain...

...why the insurgents won't just blow the hell out of both of them? I assume they wouldn't fire on Iraqi-only patrols, but what's to stop them from attacking these "Joint" patrols?

[bemildred]

3. Well, it's a stupid idea.

But the whole idea is probably to cause an incident that will
"justify' a brutal response. And no doubt it will work. There
is no reason at all to think that these "joint patrols" will
not be attacked violently. I read somewhere that they were using
Kurds in these patrols. Of course, maybe the Iraqi resistance
will outsmart them and leave them alone.

[BeHereNow]

5. You hit the nail on the head!

The neocons know perfectly well that
this situation os a recipe for disaster.
The resistance guerilla soldiers know that it will
serve them well too.
Reasoning ?
The 'murrrikans will be outraged by the
bloodshed and demand that we send more troops-
as in, no resistance to the draft.
The guerilla fighter will have no trouble in
convincing anyone sitting on the fence,
just WHO the enemy is and the very real need to
defend Islam. The guerilla army and suicide bomber
enlistement will increase as a result of this action.
The stockholders in the MIC will benefit.
Win-Win for everyone except the cannon fodder.
FUBAR!
FUBAR!
FUBAR!
BHN

[daleo]

4. Perhaps a bit of divide and conquer

If it is Kurds who make up the Iraqi part of the joint patrol, getting them involved in a few Fallujah firefights could sew dissension between them and the other Iraqi groups. Then, the U.S. could side with the Kurds in a civil war, and occupy the northern oilfields with the help of the Kurds. As long as the U.S. could swing a deal with the Turks, in terms of the status of the Kurd/U.S. area, they would be homefree with half the oil.

Then they could let the Sunnis and Shias fight over the southern oil fields and swoop down once they are all exhausted.

I don't think it would work, but this is the kind of pipedream that PNAC is fond of.

[markses]

6. Of course they are uneasy: They're being sent out for slaughter

In order to justify the full-out assault on Fallujah. This is the worst abuse of military personnel since Vietnam. The Marines are being deliberately sacrificed for propaganda purposes - sent on lightly armed patrols in order to be ambushed. This is more than the traditional practice of drawing fire for the purpose of response. This tactic is purely media driven, meant to whip the US public into a furor when a patrol gets wiped out, and thereby justify a full-on assault on Fallujah. For fucking MEDIA purposes. Outrageous. I'm sure more than a few Marines are griping good and greasy about this bullshit, cuz it stinks to high heaven. Was this Bush's decision: Run a patrol and get a few jarheads killed, then nobody'll cry when we smash the city to bits?

Truly despicable - a Bush assault on BOTH the Marines and the "Insurgents."

[Just Me]

13. How horrible! Being bait. FOR WHAT?

To crush a people that did nothing to hurt us until we invaded and occupied their country,...for greedy elitist corporatists ruling the US of A?

We all know where this is going, don't we.

There are some real "evil-doers" that deserve to lose everything they have and spend the rest of their lives being subject to all that which they have advocated against other human beings.

Hmpff. Mere "humility" will kill off the arrogant. Let's watch them die.

[spinbaby]

7. Did you see ABC news last night?

They reported a U.S. patrol made it 200 yards (!) into the city before they had to hole up in a house to fight off attacks. Then they had to shoot their way back with the help of a tank.

Does this sound like a city we can patrol even with the help of Iraqi troops?

[Ernesto]

8. As I recall from Vietnam

The worst thing that could happen to a Marine was to be assigned to a CAC. CAC= combined action company made up of Marines & "friendly" forces. A friend of mine got the call & he started crying... There was not much to say because we all knew that he was f**ked. It was like getting the death penalty....

[Gin]

10. That sense of foreboding is his inner voice telling him..he's being setup.

These guys know they are being used as fodder..from both sides..I can imagine doing a patrol with an Iraqi policeman...then..he dissappears..and you are on your own and being attacked. There will be nobody to watch their backs. God help all of them!

[Ernesto]

11. Semper Fi kick

[FlemingsGhost]

12. Why so grim? They'll be throwing flowers, I'm sure.

Waving their new and improved flag, right alongside the Stars and Stripes. A hero's welcome.

Onward Christian soldiers... Glory awaits.

[maddezmom]

14. I'd bet the joint patrols are cancelled after Tues evening n/t