MNF Iraq Commander Talks With Reporters
The United States top military person in Iraq talked with reporters giving insight regarding the conditions with Iraq. Army General David H. Petraeus is Commander of MNF Iraq and he met with reporters while traveling with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Navy Admiral Mike Mullen.
“Overall the amount and number of attacks that are happening in Iraq are down,†said General Petraeus. “The Last week have seen the lowest level of attacks in country since 2004,†said the General. Both Admiral Mullen and General Petraeus were traveling with Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker to speak jointly with the Congress and President Bush.
The level of attacks in Iraq have fallen below was previously thought was the minimum. Attacks have fallen for five months in a row. Along with this has been the steady and continued increase of trained Iraq personnel. “The community groups have stepped up, the local Concerned Local Citizen groups, and the Sons of Iraq report over 90,000 members, and the Iraqi Army has over 100,000 members,†said Petraeus.
Ambassador Crocker will talk to both Congress and the President about gains in the political field, and the increase of laws being passed in Iraq. He will discuss economics, and the possible elections that will be held soon.
As the General speaks of the conditions, he will talk about his recommendations for the withdrawal of troops and the eventual troop surge draw down. “We cannot always foresee the negative, but the number of bad things happening is getting less and less,†said General Petraeus.
