"US, Iraqi leaders begin talks on long-term goals"
"by Alexandra Zavis and Julian E. Barnes, Los Angeles Times | March 12, 2008
BAGHDAD - The United States and Iraq have opened negotiations on a blueprint for relations after the United Nations mandate for the presence of American-led troops in Iraq expires at the end of the year, officials said yesterday....
Officials say the talks will focus on two deals. One, known as a strategic framework agreement, will provide a blueprint for diplomatic, economic, and security relations based on mutual sovereignty. The other, known as a status of forces agreement, will provide a legal basis for the presence of US troops in Iraq....
We are NEVER LEAVING, folks, so GET USED TO IT, right?
Just eat that bowl of shit!
White House officials say the latter agreement will not set force levels or establish any permanent bases in Iraq.
Yeah, o.k., LIARS!!!!
The two sides have released few details about what they hope to get out of the deals, which are being negotiated behind closed doors....
US officials have said they will not seek the same protections currently enjoyed by private security contractors in Iraq, nor will they ask for the same freedom to conduct military operations whenever they choose that they have now. But they will want to preserve the right to pursue terror suspects. Another senior administration official noted in January that the effectiveness of Iraq's security forces varies from region to region and said the agreement must have "enough flexibility for us to adapt based on conditions on the ground."
US forces say attacks have dropped more than 60 percent nationwide since a troop buildup was complete in the middle of last year, but that the security gains are fragile and insurgents remain a threat."So was it worth it, readers?
Was losing the most Americans since the invasion worth this?
Are you tired of the "good enough improvement, surge worked, but we can't leave" bullshit?!
CUI fucking BONO, readers?
Need help deciding?
"Roadside bomb kills 16 in Iraq"
"by Alexandra Zavis, Los Angeles Times | March 12, 2008
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb ripped into a bus carrying mourners home to the southern city of Basra after attending a funeral in Najaf yesterday, killing 16 of them and injuring between 13 and 22, police said.
The bombing, part of a wave of attacks that killed at least 36 people across Iraq, highlighted the precariousness of recent security gains. The US military has acknowledged a slight increase in violence in recent weeks, but says it is too soon to call it a trend.
WAS IT WORTH IT?
No benchmarks met yet, but WAS IT WORTH IT?!
So the MSM could "tell you" the SURGE WORKED!
WAS IT WORTH IT?
Major bombings are relatively rare in the overwhelmingly Shi'ite Muslim south, which has been spared the worst of the Sunni Arab insurgent violence plaguing central and northern Iraq. But Shi'ite militants periodically clash with US-led forces in the region.
Rival Shi'ite factions are locked in a bloody rivalry for power and influence in oil-rich southern Iraq.
Iraqi police said yesterday's blast, which happened on the highway between Nasiriya and Basra, appeared to be aimed at a passing US convoy but missed its target.
Elsewhere in the south, Iraqi security officials said heavy clashes erupted late Monday between their forces and militiamen loyal to radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr during raids in two sections of Kut. The fighting continued yesterday, killing at least six people and injuring 18, including four policemen, they said.
Oh, going after him again are we?
NEVER-ENDING ENEMIES in those sands of Iraq!
Doesn't Shi'ite Sadr hate Qaeda?
A US Special Forces unit was ambushed by a large number of fighters when it responded to a request for help from the Iraqis in Kut, the military said in a statement.
Ambush, see the Language of Zionism
The unit returned fire and later called in an airstrike against a vehicle that was observed distributing weapons to the fighters.
Sadr renewed a cease-fire last month, but issued a statement over the weekend authorizing his followers to defend themselves if attacked.
North of the capital, a gunfight between Iraqi police and unknown assailants killed at least nine people yesterday in Mosul, the city that US commanders describe as the last urban stronghold of Sunni insurgents loyal to Al Qaeda in Iraq.
In Duluiya, also north of Baghdad, a suicide bomber in an explosives-laden minibus attacked a checkpoint manned by policemen and local tribesmen paid by the US military. At least five Iraqis were killed and 13 injured, including two children, police said."Yeah, about all this violence and everything, see:
Occupation Iraq: Israeli-Trained Death Squads
Prop 101: Al-CIA-Duh and the OSI
Prop 101: Al-CIA-Duh's Greatest Hits
Prop 101: The "Terrorism" Business
Prop 102: Iraq and Government Lies
"Al-CIA-Duhs" Catch-and-Release Program
Proactive, Preemptive Operations Group
How much more evidence you need, readers?
And did I mention the DOD's MSM press offices in Lincoln, the Pentagon, or Langley?
That's where the AmeriKan press gets their "reports."
By the way, the number of Iraqis killed by the surge has been around 300 per day, 10,000 per month -- with 1.2 million Iraqis dead since the invasion, mainly due to the U.S. military's 75 air raids a day, and the five-fold increase in air bombings.
Also see: Story Iraq: MSM Lied About Death Tolls
Memory Hole: 600,000 DEAD!
Occupation Iraq: One Million Dead Iraqis
You clear now, readers?
