Re: Meanwhileback in Iraq...

Pentagon: Iraq Insurgency Steady Until '07
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By ROBERT BURNS AP Military Writer

May 30,2006 | WASHINGTON -- The Sunni Arab heart of the Iraqi
insurgency seems likely to hold its strength the rest of the year, and
some of its leaders are now collaborating with al-Qaida terrorists, the
Pentagon said Tuesday.

In a report assessing the situation in Iraq, required quarterly by
Congress, the Pentagon painted a mixed picture on a day when the U.S.
military command in Baghdad said 1,500 more combat troops have arrived
in the country. The extra troops are part of an intensified effort to
wrest control of the provincial capital of Ramadi from insurgents.

The report to Congress offered a relatively dim picture of economic
progress, with few gains in improving basic services like electricity,
and it provided no promises of U.S. troop reductions anytime soon.

On the other hand, it said the Iraqi army is gaining strength and
taking lead responsibility for security in more areas.

The U.S. government has struggled for three years to understand the
shadowy insurgency in Iraq, which began in the Sunni Triangle west and
north of Baghdad. In Tuesday's report, the Pentagon said the
"rejectionists" who are a key element of the insurgency are holding
their own against U.S. and Iraqi forces.

"MNF-I expects that rejectionist strength will likely remain steady
throughout 2006, but that their appeal and motivation for continued
violent action will begin to wane in early 2007," the report said. The
term MNF-I refers to the Multinational Force-Iraq, the top American
military command in Baghdad.

It also said for the first time that the Sunnis who reject the
U.S.-based government are collaborating with al-Qaida.

"Some hardline Sunni rejectionists have joined al-Qaida in Iraq in
recent months, increasing the terrorists' attack options," the report
said.

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http://www.salon.com/wire/ap/archive.html?wire=D8HUDMNG0.html

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