[pjw] NEWS: US to send 560 more troops to Iraq, totalling 4647 (AP 7/11)

[Peace and Justice Works]

Y'know, we just had a presentation yesterday by Brian Willson (and a few 
other Viet Nam veterans who were there) about the continued aftermath of 
that conflict, and here we have the US slowly building its troops back up 
in Iraq, a country we supposedly left in 2011.

According to this site
<http://www.americanwarlibrary.com/vietnam/vwatl.htm>,
this is how troop deployments looked in the early years of Viet Nam 
(which began as "small deployments of military advisors"):

1959 760
1960 900
1961 3205
1962 11,300
1963 16,300
1964 23,300
1965 184,300

It's as though the war at home (now including remote controlled bomb 
"robots" blowing up civilians, in addition to other violence by police 
against the public and by the public against each other/the state) isn't 
enough and they want to keep pushing killing as a means to resolve 
conflict. And wonder how we got here.

dan h
peace and justice works iraq affinity group


http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/carter-announces-560-more-us-troops-to-iraq/ar-BBuaO81
Carter announces 560 more US troops to Iraq
  Associated Press July 11, 2016o By LOLITA C. BALDOR,  Associated Press

    BAGHDAD -- The United States will send 560 more troops to Iraq to help
    establish a newly retaken air base as a staging hub for the
    long-awaited battle to recapture Mosul from Islamic State militants,
    Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Monday on an unannounced visit to the
    country.

    Most of the new troops will be devoted to the build-up of the Qayara
    air base, about 40 miles south of Mosul, and include engineers,
    logistics personnel and other forces, Carter said. They will help Iraqi
    security forces planning to encircle and eventually retake the key
    city.

    "These additional U.S. forces will bring unique capabilities to the
    campaign and provide critical enabler support to Iraqi forces at a key
    moment in the fight," Carter said, according to prepared remarks.

    He revealed President Barack Obama's decision as he spoke to about 120
    troops in a building at Baghdad's airport, shielded from scorching
    desert hovering near 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Many were members of the
    101st Airborne Division, known as the Screaming Eagles. The increase
    brings the total U.S. force authorization in Iraq to 4,647, and comes
    just three months after Obama's last troop addition.

    Carter told reporters earlier that U.S. advisers are prepared to
    accompany Iraqi battalions if needed, as those units begin the siege of
    the key northern city. It's not clear when exactly that will happen.
    U.S. officials said a team of American troops went into Qayara for a
    quick site assessment Sunday and left.

    One potential job is helping Iraqi troops use highly technical bridging
    capabilities to get across the river into Mosul.

    Carter called this weekend's recapture of Qayara a key strategic
    victory. Speaking to reporters before he arrived in Baghdad, he said
    the air base will be one a hub from which "Iraqi Security Forces,
    accompanied and advised by us as needed, will complete the
    southern-most envelopment of Mosul. That's its strategic role, and
    that's its strategic importance."

    He likened the air base to how forces used the eastern city of
    Makhmour. There, U.S. troops set up a fire base for artillery to
    support advancing Iraqi units. Marine Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin was
    killed at the fire base in March in an IS rocket attack.

    Iraqi forces retook the air base from the Islamic State group on
    Saturday. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi hailed the success as a key
    step toward Mosul, Iraq's second largest city. Residents there should
    "get ready for the liberation of their areas," al-Abadi said.

    U.S. officials said American advisers are already working at brigade
    level with Iraqi special operations forces, but they have not yet
    accompanied them on operations. They weren't authorized to discuss the
    matter publicly and demanded anonymity.

    Obama in April allowed U.S. troops to assist Iraqi forces at brigade
    and battalion levels, where they could be at greater risk closer to the
    battle. They would still be behind front lines. They previously had
    been limited to advising at headquarters and division levels, further
    from the battle.

    Carter is expected to meet al-Abadi and minister of defense Khalid
    al-Obeidi, and Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland, the top U.S. military
    commander for the Islamic State fight. The main topic, he said, will be
    the next steps in the military campaign, with a particular focus on
    Mosul.

    IS captured Mosul in the summer of 2014. It has used the city as a main
    headquarters since.

    Carter's daylong visit to Iraq comes on the heels of the two-day NATO
    summit where allies agreed to expand their military support for the
    war.

    In addition to Qayara, Iraqi government troops recently have retaken
    Ramadi, Fallujah and a number of towns along the route to Mosul.

    But Islamic State militants still control large swaths of the country
    and continue to launch deadly attacks, including a massive suicide
    bombing last week at Baghdad's bustling commercial area of Karada. As
    many as 186 were killed.