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BTL:U.S. Veterans Say Iraq Insurgency Grows as the War is Mismanaged |
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by Between the Lines' Scott Harris
Email: betweenthelines (nospam) snet.net (verified)
Address: BETWEEN THE LINES c/o WPKN Radio 89.5 FM Bridgeport, Connecticut |
17 Dec 2004
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Interview with Paul Rieckhoff, former U.S. Army lieutenant, and founder of Operation Truth conducted by Between the Lines' Scott Harris |
U.S. Veterans Say Iraq Insurgency Grows as the War is Mismanaged
Interview with Paul Rieckhoff, former U.S. Army lieutenant, and founder of Operation Truth conducted by Scott Harris
Dec. 12 marked the deadliest day for U.S. forces serving in Iraq in more than a month, when eight U.S. Marines were killed in operations in and around Falluja. Despite a series of pronouncements designed to assure the American public that the Iraq war is going well, the insurgency continues to grow with security deteriorating across wide swaths of the country. Yet, the White House and Iraq's interim government are determined to proceed with national elections scheduled for Jan. 30, ignoring calls for a delay by a number of important political parties.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, already the target of a lawsuit filed in Germany holding him and other Bush administration officials responsible for torture and war crimes committed in Iraq, recently visited U.S. troops in Kuwait bound for combat duty in Iraq for what he thought was a photo op. But in a meeting with 2, 300 soldiers, the Defense Secretary encountered tough questions from National Guard reservists who asked why they were forced to search out scrap metal to protect their vehicles. Meanwhile Arizona's Republican Sen. John McCain expressed his strong disagreement on the way the war is being run by bluntly telling a reporter that he has "no confidence" in Rumsfeld.
Paul Rieckhoff, a former U.S. Army first lieutenant who served in Iraq from January 2003 through February 2004, came back to the U.S. with deep concerns about the conduct of the war and the treatment of veterans. He recently founded the veterans advocacy group Operation Truth where he serves as executive director. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Rieckhoff about his own experience in Iraq and the reality of the war he is working to convey to the American people.
Call Operation Truth at (212) 982- 9699 or visit their website at www.optruth.org
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