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Opinion : Will Surge Strategy work ?
munaeem | 11 January, 2007 18:34
With U.S. President George W. Bush's new Iraq strategy unveiled, it is clear that the administration is running out of options. The "surge" policy that will now be implemented is an attempt to somewhat stabilize the situation in Baghdad.
This is the most that the new policy can hope for -- temporary stabilization -- because
a surge in troops does little to address the issues that are fomenting the insurgency. Once the surplus soldiers are called back, or once the insurgents adapt to the increased numbers, attacks will escalate again and Washington will be in the same position that it is in now.
A previous surge in troop levels in the Baghdad region was launched in mid-June 2006, as part of Operation Together Forward, but, after minor initial success, the move actually produced an increase in sectarian violence. After the initial surge was deemed insufficient to reverse this trend, an additional 3,700 troops were sent to Baghdad, but again this only led to further increases in violence.
According to the Iraq Study Group, "The results of Operation Together Forward II are disheartening. Violence in Baghdad -- already at high levels --
jumped more than 43 percent between the summer and October 2006. U.S. forces continue to suffer high casualties."
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