Photo By Staff Sgt. Curt Cashour | Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of Multi-National Corps - Iraq, speaks with CNBC's...... read more read more
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By Sgt. Curt Cashour
MNC-I Public Affairs
CAMP VICTORY, Iraq - More than a month into a joint U.S. and Iraqi effort to secure Baghdad, the man responsible for day to day command of coalition troops in Iraq said there are visible signs of success, but the operation could take anywhere from five to eight months.
In a March 27 interview via satellite, Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of Multi-National Corps - Iraq, told CNBC's Maria Bartiromo that the first few weeks of the Baghdad Security Plan have brought about a significant decrease in sectarian murders in Baghdad and an increase in the ability of coalition forces to find illegal weapons throughout the country.
The plan, dubbed Fardh al-Qanoon in Arabic, which translates to "enforcing the law," pairs existing American and Iraqi forces in the area with nearly 20,000 fresh American troops and an influx of Iraqi security forces. The plan also has the troops living in violence-plagued areas in order to maintain a 24 hour presence.
Iraqis are in charge of the plan, and have moved more than 9,000 soldiers from outside of Baghdad into the city. They now have more than 26,000 soldiers and 25,000 police operating in the area. Two new brigades of American Soldiers have already begun operations in support the plan, with a third due to start in the next week, Odierno said.
The increase in forces is only about 30 percent complete and is scheduled to reach full strength sometime in June. After that, it will take a few months to gauge whether the plan is working, Odierno said.
"I believe within five to eight months, we'll be able to make a good assessment of where [Iraqis] are in building their capacity, and based on that, we'll be able to make a decision on how long this surge will go," he said.
Despite the complex problems facing Iraq, the goal of the surge is simple: protect the Iraqi people, Odierno said.
"It's really about psychologically gaining the approval of the Iraqi people, so they understand they are in fact being protected, and allowing the government of Iraq to continue to grow in its capacity across the entire governmental spectrum. With that, we think we'll build the momentum necessary to be successful," he said.
Odierno said he travels extensively throughout the country and has seen progress beyond the Baghdad area. In Anbar province, for example, local tribes have partnered with coalition forces to drive al Qaeda from the area, which was once a major stronghold for the group.
In the last 30 days, explosive factory and weapons cache finds are up by nearly 50 percent. As additional Iraqi and American forces are integrated around the country, the goal is to focus more on eliminating accelerants of violence, or acts against innocent civilians in an attempt to create chaos, Odierno said.
Odierno acknowledged the fact that there seems to be a finite amount of time for America to achieve it's objectives in Iraq, but said the real issue surrounding the war is not when it will end, but when forces related to the surge can be reduced.
"What I ask for is some patience. I know patience is running out, but we're hoping we'll be able to show a little bit of success here so people will gain some confidence in what we're trying to do. We're working as hard as we can for that to happen," he said.
| Date Taken: | 03.30.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 03.31.2007 01:47 |
| Story ID: | 9704 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 142 |
| Downloads: | 120 |
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