13 April 2003
Combat Operations Transitioning to Iraqi Self-Government, Franks Says
(Nasiriyah meeting of Iraqis a step towards interim government) (480) By Howard Cincotta Washington File Special Correspondent The phase of decisive military operations in Iraq is nearing an end, and U.S. and coalition forces can now turn to the work of recovery, General Tommy Franks, the commander of Operation Iraqi Freedom, said in television news interviews on April 13. General Franks appeared on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos and Fox News Sunday with Tony Snow. "We're in this transition from decisive combat into providing governance for the Iraqi people of their own choosing," Franks said. "And I think it's going well." Franks described the current situation in Iraq as quite varied, with sharp fighting in some locations and peaceful welcomes in others. On Fox News Sunday, he told of troops preparing for combat who were then "greeted by people who were simply saying, 'We're pleased. All the regular army people left town, and here's their equipment.'" Even as the combat phase winds down, Franks acknowledged, the need for security and humanitarian assistance remains critical. On ABC's This Week, Franks confirmed that he has invited Iraqis from both inside and outside the country to an April 15 meeting in Nasiriyah, which will begin the process of shaping the future Iraqi government. "What we want is an organizational meeting where people can come together and begin, themselves, to decide how they want in the future to determine an interim government," he said. In preparing for the Nasiriyah meeting, Franks emphasized that he had consulted widely in the United States and the international community and talked with regional leaders and other representatives inside Iraq. Franks warned that there is still work to be done in eliminating the hard-core remnants of the regime and cited Baghdad as an example. Coalition forces have divided the city into 55 or 60 zones, he explained on Fox News Sunday. In perhaps 15 to 20 of those zones, he said, the coalition expects to be engaging groups of five to 25 "hard-core folks." By contrast, Franks noted the success of civil military operations in locations throughout the country. "We have already had oil workers from the northern and southern oil fields come to us and say, 'Well, we're ready to go back to work now,'" Franks said on ABC This Week. "People in the civil administration have already come to us and said, 'We're ready to take care of our destiny and go back to work.'" In Umm Qasar, Iraq's only deep-water port, Franks said both U.S. and British civil affairs teams are working and have improved the water levels beyond the standard that existed before the war. "Each of these units [has] military policemen," he said on ABC This Week. "They have engineers. They have electricians." (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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