Out of Iraq, Embarrassment or Relief?
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
Out of Iraq, Embarrassment or Relief?
Gordon Brown has humiliated British forces in Iraq
What an ignominious way for the British Armed Forces' involvement in Iraq to end. Rather than returning with heads held high for a victory parade, they are informed by Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi Prime Minister, that their services are no longer required and would they mind catching the first plane home to blighty.
After all the sacrifices of the past five years, our mission to Iraq ends not with a bang, but a whimper. And it's all Gordon Brown's fault. As I write in today's edition, Mr al-Maliki has hardly said a civil word to British commanders in Iraq since the government ordered British forces to withdraw from the centre of Basra last September and abandon Iraq's second city to the control of lawless Shia militias and criminal gangs. The Iraqis - in one of their first serious combat operations - took control of the city themselves in the spring, and since then British forces have been left kicking their heels at the heavily fortified air base on the outskirts of Basra.
You can't blame the Armed Forces for this mess. They still want to be out on patrol helping the Iraqis with the painful process of rebuilding their country after three decades of Baathist tyranny.
But Mr Brown always regarded Iraq as "Blair's war", and the moment he entered Downing Street he sought to bring British forces home at the first available opportunity.
And now he has got what he wants, with Mr al-Maliki stating graphically that British forces are no longer making a useful contribution to his country's security, and might just as well pack up and go home.
Mr Brown will no doubt be pleased to hear this, but in his haste to end Britain's involvement in Iraq he has inflicted a shameful humiliation on the reputation and standing of Britain's Armed Forces.
What an ignominious way for the British Armed Forces' involvement in Iraq to end. Rather than returning with heads held high for a victory parade, they are informed by Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi Prime Minister, that their services are no longer required and would they mind catching the first plane home to blighty.
After all the sacrifices of the past five years, our mission to Iraq ends not with a bang, but a whimper. And it's all Gordon Brown's fault. As I write in today's edition, Mr al-Maliki has hardly said a civil word to British commanders in Iraq since the government ordered British forces to withdraw from the centre of Basra last September and abandon Iraq's second city to the control of lawless Shia militias and criminal gangs. The Iraqis - in one of their first serious combat operations - took control of the city themselves in the spring, and since then British forces have been left kicking their heels at the heavily fortified air base on the outskirts of Basra.
You can't blame the Armed Forces for this mess. They still want to be out on patrol helping the Iraqis with the painful process of rebuilding their country after three decades of Baathist tyranny.
But Mr Brown always regarded Iraq as "Blair's war", and the moment he entered Downing Street he sought to bring British forces home at the first available opportunity.
And now he has got what he wants, with Mr al-Maliki stating graphically that British forces are no longer making a useful contribution to his country's security, and might just as well pack up and go home.
Mr Brown will no doubt be pleased to hear this, but in his haste to end Britain's involvement in Iraq he has inflicted a shameful humiliation on the reputation and standing of Britain's Armed Forces.
quad50cal
October 13, 2008
"Gordon Clown has humiliated British forces in Iraq"
Not just them, the one-eyed nostril-miner has humiliated the whole nation...........
12:39 PM GMT
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: UK
Posts: 108
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
To be honest, forget the parades and 1 day long fanfares. The best way to honour the troops is to provide good housing, pay, pensions, benefits, etc, etc when they get home. Even if the spineless governments of the UK and Iraq aren’t prepared to send them off/welcome them home properly, it is up to those of us who have seen the sacrifice made by our friends and colleagues to make sure it is never forgotten.
Whether Maliki likes it or not, his stinking hole of a country has been improved immeasurably because of the UK presence in it. The real test for him is to make those improvements last. I would also suggest that our fallen comrades paid the ultimate price in that country not primarily for a free and democratic Iraq but for the friends they fought/flew shoulder to shoulder with.
Whether Maliki likes it or not, his stinking hole of a country has been improved immeasurably because of the UK presence in it. The real test for him is to make those improvements last. I would also suggest that our fallen comrades paid the ultimate price in that country not primarily for a free and democratic Iraq but for the friends they fought/flew shoulder to shoulder with.
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Scotland
Age: 45
Posts: 67
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm not sure I understand the point of this article. I thought the aim of British forces in Southern Iraq was to maintain security until the Iraqi forces had the capability to do this for themselves?
OK, so isn't this a success? I'm sure that the British Troops weren't actually "kicking their heels" but were ready to assist the Iraqi forces if they got into trouble. Surely the fact that they didn't have to go back into Basra is a positive sign?
What actually were these graphic words used by Mr al-Maliki? While I have no love for Brown and his gang, I really dislike the flowery language being used by the Torygraph to suggest that our troops have been humiliated. Sure Basra is still a dangerous place, but now that Iraqis have been trained up sufficiently, they can deal with it in their own way which was the whole bloody point in the first place. 
The Iraqis - in one of their first serious combat operations - took control of the city themselves in the spring, and since then British forces have been left kicking their heels at the heavily fortified air base on the outskirts of Basra.
with Mr al-Maliki stating graphically that British forces are no longer making a useful contribution to his country's security, and might just as well pack up and go home.
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: bored
Posts: 532
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Whether Maliki likes it or not, his stinking hole of a country has been improved immeasurably because of the UK presence in it.
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Bridport
Age: 49
Posts: 81
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
To all you servicemen - I think that the majority of the British public, me included, realise what a great job you have done and continue to do in extermely difficult situations. Even if the Government doesn't recognise it, the rest of us do!
