"New blood": Guardian 19 July 2005 article about US and new Iraqi armies

[Benbow]

After one of the deadliest weekends in Iraq since the fall of Saddam, calls for foreign troops to be pulled out of the country have redoubled. All hopes of future stability rest on the shoulders of the Iraqi army - but as Ghaith Abdul-Ahad discovered when he spent a fortnight with an elite unit, poor equipment, rampant sectarianism and the 'Saddam mentality' mean they have little chance against a ruthless insurgency

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1531519,00.html

Ghaith is a friend of "Salam Pax".