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| Iraq-Jordan |
| With rebels ruling Iraq roads, U.S. forces feeling pinched |
| 2004-04-20 |
| EFL This is the Front Page article of ’The Seattle Times’. Oh and I almost forgot: "YOU ARE ALL GOING TO DIEEEEEE!!!!!!!" By Nicholas Riccardi and Edmund Sanders Los Angeles Times AKA the ’National Enquirer’ of LA BAGHDAD, Iraq — At a sprawling desert camp in southern Iraq, U.S. soldiers sleep in trucks and Humvees because Iraqi merchants are afraid to deliver tents. On a key road west through the Sunni Triangle, masked men with Kalashnikov assault rifles have occupied the concrete-block checkpoints the U.S. military once used. At Baghdad’s airport, goods are piling up because Iraqi truckers refuse to brave the main highway to the capital or transport the material to other U.S. bases. Of all the sudden changes in Iraq during the past three weeks, control of the roads is among the most striking. The U.S.-led coalition has been unable to hold onto all of its supply and communication lines on vital routes leading from the capital. Insurgents have blown up key bridges and rocketed fuel convoys. Although the U.S. military says there are no serious shortages, the perilous state of Iraq’s roads adds to a sense of chaos created by three weeks of Iraqi resistance that has left at least 99 U.S. service members dead, dozens of foreign civilian workers taken hostage and two allies, Spain and Honduras, announcing they will pull their troops out of the country. The United States vows to retake the roads; meanwhile, it is flying in more material from Kuwait and altering convoy routes and times. "In some cases, we have had to change the way we do business, but the bottom line is that critical supplies — food, water, fuel, ammunition, spare parts — are getting to the people that need them," said Army Maj. Richard Spiegel, of the 13th Corps Support Command, which is in charge of logistics in Iraq. "Example: Are some mess halls serving less variety of food? Yes, they are ... but there is still plenty of fresh food." Still, insurgents only need to dent the supply lines to have a serious impact on the military’s ability to maneuver, said Charles Heyman, a senior analyst at Jane’s Consulting Group. "It looks like the opposition has gotten its act together," he said. "It is reducing the ability of the coalition to operate where ... (it wants) to." The road to Baghdad International Airport, on the western edge of the capital, has long been the site of ambushes of U.S. convoys, but insurgents last week increased assaults on trucks and convoys and began handing out leaflets warning of more attacks. That was enough for Qassim Kadhum, 43. Until Saturday, the trucker was still picking up goods at the airport. But after passing several burned-out cars that day, he said he understood why crates were piling up at the terminals with no one to move them. Kadhum decided he would join other Iraqis who had stopped hauling supplies from the airport. "We are worried we’ll be targets," he said. "We are not only worried about our safety, but the future of our families." Military buyers had signed contracts with local vendors to supply everything from water to portable tents. "When the security situation gets bad, they don’t want to deliver, and that’s what’s happening now," said Army Capt. Ron Talarico, who is helping coordinate supplies. Seems like something we should fix. On the other paw you have to wonder if they even left the hotel bar to get this story...... Material from The Associated Press, The Washington Post and Reuters is included in this report. Guess not... |
| Posted by:CrazyFool |
| #4 LOL Chris W. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-04-20 8:27:38 PM |
| #3 My advice to the coalition forces: tip the Dominos man an extra fiver for the effort. The pie might be cold if he stops to fire counter-battery. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-04-20 7:13:12 PM |
| #2 Note that this piece cites only vague generalities and a few anecdotes to support some very broad and generalized conclusions, and to invite broader inferences. There are no facts about the overall situation, nothing on the real number of ambushes vs. the volume of traffic, no data on the actual effect this has on traffic flow, and no summary of shortages resulting from this activity. The strongly invited conclusion is that the rebels are winning, but no facts are presented to justify this. Not all of Dr. Goebbel's spiritual children work for Al Jazeera. LAT, for its part, is the paper of record for the media conformist culture. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2004-04-20 2:23:11 PM |
| #1 QUAGMIRE! (first!) |
| Posted by: Chris W. 2004-04-20 1:56:41 PM |