Word: petraeus
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...This thug is a fast rewind to the old Soviet totalitarian regime (as in KGB) and has been and will continue to be a thorn in the side of the U.S. for years. Why would you choose him? Why not General David Petraeus, a genuine man and true hero? Keith Wrigley, Queensbury...
...remains a dangerous adversary for the American military and the Iraqi government. According to statistics released at Petraeus' press conference, suicide bombings - a favorite AQI tactic - declined significantly in 2007 but have been inching up again since October. On Saturday, Petraeus said that "the vast majority" of attacks in Iraq are still carried out by AQI. The beginning of 2008 brought a reminder of the dangers. On New Year's Day a suicide bombing killed at least 30 people in Baghdad; the target was a funeral for a man killed in a previous bombing...
...Although their capabilities have been diminished," Petraeus said of AQI, "you might liken them to a fighter who's been dropped to the canvas once or twice. That fighter keeps coming back off the canvas, has a very lethal right hand, and can land very tough blows...
Meanwhile, the Mahdi Army, Iraq's largest and deadliest Shi'ite militia, made it through 2007 by refusing to trade body blows with the American military. Petraeus, echoing other American officials, told reporters that "the potential long-term challenge to Iraq is the militia-extremist challenge." To keep the political peace in Iraq, Petraeus and the U.S. military have been careful not to attach the names of the Mahdi Army and its leader Moqtada al Sadr to the threat, hence the use of terms like "the militia-extremist challenge." Sadr controls a sizable political organization as well as his militia...
Meanwhile, Sadr's militia may be asserting mafia-like control over the poor Shi'ite areas where it has long provided the services and security the government has not. "What you do have is, the Mahdi Army, Inc.," said Petraeus, backing up an earlier assessment by U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker. The militia has come to dominate not simply by force, but also by controlling staples like fuel and electricity...