23 March 2003
General Describes U.S. Losses, but Says Victory Is Certain
(U.S. Central Command report, March 23) (670) By Jane Morse Washington File Staff Writer Washington -- U.S. operations in Iraq are continuing successfully, but some resistance has been encountered in a number of locations, the most notable near An Nazariyah, where U.S. forces experienced "the sharpest engagement in the war thus far," U.S. Army Lieutenant General John Abizaid told the press during a March 23 U.S. Central Command briefing. Speaking in Doha, Qatar, Abizaid confirmed that a convoy of U.S. Army personnel was ambushed near An Nazariyah, and 12 Americans are missing. They are believed to still be in the hands of the irregular Iraqi forces that captured them, and their status is not known. Abizaid reported that U.S. combat personnel did a "superb job" in extracting ambush survivors. Iraqi government television aired footage of what it said showed the captured American military personnel, a move Abizaid said was "disgusting" and a violation of the Geneva Convention. But he added that the incident will not damage U.S. military morale nor lessen the resolve of the American people. He noted a few incidents that involved Iraqi forces, who, dressed as civilians, made gestures to surrender to coalition forces, only to turn around and attack instead. About 10 U.S. marines were killed in such a fake surrender near An Nazariyah. "We of course will be much more cautious in the way that we view the battlefield," the general said, but he emphasized that "we will continue to do everything possible to safeguard civilians." "Despite our losses, the enemy remains in grave danger and our victory is certain," Abizaid said. "The war is a very, very risky business for everybody," he acknowledged. "We are not overconfident about this endeavor. We are confident about the ultimate outcome of this endeavor. We are soldiers, sailors, airman and marines in a combined and joint team that is very powerful and one of the most integrated and well trained forces ever put together. There won't be anything that stops us on the battlefield." According to the general, regular Iraqi forces have "melted away" from the battlefield, abandoning their equipment. So far, coalition forces have captured about 2,000 Iraqi soldiers, he reported. "In the (Iraqi) regular army, there is clearly very, very little will to fight," Abizaid said. Responding to questions about when coalition forces might enter the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, Abizaid said he expected that to happen soon. "We have not seen on the battlefield a single coherent (Iraqi) military move. These moves are dangerous to the troops in the field, but they are not dangerous to the success of the mission," he said. "The main forces that are closing on Baghdad are powerful and unstoppable." When asked about civilian casualties, Abizaid acknowledged the risk, but emphasized: "We do more as a coalition, probably, than any other coalition in history to protect the lives of innocent civilians." "No one has killed more Muslims than Saddam Hussein," the general said. "The majority of educated Arabs that I talked to know that Saddam Hussein has been a plague on the Arab world and upon his own people, and they welcome his removal." But he added: "This campaign is not about the single person of Saddam Hussein. It's about a brutal and corrupt regime that has used weapons of mass destruction against its own people that must be overthrown. We will continue the attack until the regime is overthrown." On Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD), Abizaid said: "I think we will find WMD once we have had an opportunity to occupy Baghdad, stabilize Iraq, talk to Iraqis that have participated in the hiding and in the development of it. And it will take some time. We should not expect to immediately come across it. ... I have no doubt that we'll find weapons of mass destruction; but you shouldn't think it's going to happen tomorrow." (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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