Rumsfeld Announces Troop Cuts in Iraq
'Adjustment' of Two Brigades Comes After Day of Violence, Post-Election Anger

By Jonathan Finer
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, December 24, 2005

BAGHDAD, Dec. 23 -- As anger over Iraq's disputed recent election boiled over in Baghdad's streets and mosques Friday, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld announced that the number of American combat troops in the country would be reduced by about 7,000 early next year.

Rumsfeld said the "adjustment" was made possible by political progress demonstrated in the elections last week and the development of Iraq's U.S.-trained police and army. U.S. officials have maintained that any reduction of American forces was contingent upon the capability of Iraqi security forces, who now number about 216,000.

"To successfully have three elections, fashion a constitution and ratify a constitution, and elect a government under that new constitution is a truly impressive accomplishment," said Rumsfeld, flanked by U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari and the country's interior and defense ministers. "We feel very pleased with the progress being made by the Iraqi security forces and the increased role they are playing in providing security in Iraq."

Meanwhile, the U.S. military announced Friday that three American soldiers died in improvised bomb attacks in Baghdad. One was killed while on patrol Thursday, and two died Friday when a blast struck their vehicle. Elsewhere, a suicide bombing and other insurgent attacks killed at least 17 people north of the capital.

While Rumsfeld spoke inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, more than 10,000 demonstrators gathered in the western part of the city to protest an election they called a sham. The imam of an influential Sunni mosque told followers to expect more unrest ahead.

"Fraud enhances the occupation and ethnic divisions," one banner said.

Iraq's Sunni Arabs, a minority that ruled the country before Saddam Hussein was toppled and is believed to make up the bulk of the insurgency, recently returned to the political arena after boycotting elections in January. They turned out in force for parliamentary elections last week, but according to preliminary results, their parties won fewer seats than they expected, an outcome they attribute to foul play by the Shiite Muslim-led government. The largest Sunni parties have threatened to boycott Iraq's next parliament unless elections are repeated, a move election officials and Western diplomats have said is unlikely.

Iraq's election commission has received about 1,500 complaints of wrongdoing and reports of almost 50 serious grievances that could affect results, election officials have said. Each complaint will be investigated.

"I am frustrated," said Muhammed Mashadani, a 61-year-old man with a cane in one hand and an Iraqi flag in the other. Mashadani said he voted last week in favor of the Sunni Tawafaq slate, but "my right is abused because of the cheating." He said he would participate in every protest until "we bring our people to power."

Earlier, during Friday prayers at Baghdad's Um al-Qura mosque, Sheik Mahmoud Sumaidaie said to "be prepared for ordeal and strife."

"Today, we are passing through crisis," the imam said. "Death is glory in the defense of Islam, and life is glory as we boycott cheating and fraud."

The troop reduction -- previously reported in The Washington Post and elsewhere -- will amount to just over 5 percent of the roughly 138,000 U.S. combat forces in Iraq. It will be accomplished by diverting two brigades set to deploy to Iraq. Most of one will stay in the United States, while the other will be based in Kuwait and could be sent to Iraq if needed.

Rumsfeld first announced the realignment in a speech to Marines Friday morning in the western city of Fallujah, where U.S. forces conducted a broad offensive against insurgents late last year.

Later Friday, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top U.S. commander in Iraq, told reporters that he hoped for a further reduction of forces in the spring.

"In this type of war that we're fighting, more is not necessarily better," Casey said. "In fact, in Iraq, less coalition [troops], at this point in time, is better. Less is better because it doesn't feed the notion of occupation. . . . It doesn't lengthen the time for the Iraqis to be self-reliant, and it doesn't expose coalition forces to risk when there are Iraqi forces that are capable of standing up and doing it."

Casey called the deployment of one brigade to Kuwait "a hedge against the uncertainty of the next few months." He said with units rotating in and out of the country, the new troop level of about 130,000 would not be reached until March.

Opinion polls have shown that a vast majority of Iraqis support reducing the U.S. presence here. Jafari, the prime minister, said the decision to do so should be seen as a message to the Iraqi people that Iraq's security forces are ready "to fill the gap left by the multinational forces" and to insurgents that "there is no room for terrorism in Iraq."

Also Friday, the court trying Saddam Hussein and seven co-defendants issued a statement objecting to the recent release by U.S. officials of former members of Hussein's government held since capture soon after the 2003 invasion.

The U.S. military this week announced the release of eight captives, including two figures long alleged to have been leaders of Iraq's biological weapons programs: Rihab Rashid Taha Azawi, known in the media as "Dr. Germ," and Huda Salih Ammash, dubbed "Mrs. Anthrax." A lawyer said at least 16 others had been released with them.

The statement said the tribunal held warrants for their arrest and "will continue taking judicial measures" to return them to custody.

During his briefing, Casey said that because "there was no evidence that caused us to continue to detain them," the military was "bound by international law" to release them." The tribunal had been given time to provide additional evidence but had not done so, Casey said.

Elsewhere in Iraq, in Balad Ruz, 65 miles northeast of Baghdad, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a Shiite mosque, killing 10 people and wounding four others.

"I was only about 100 meters away when I heard the explosion," said Ali Abdul Kareem Jassam, 45. "I saw bodies strewn around, people bleeding and a lot of destruction. I helped the others to collect body parts inside the mosque."

In Udhaim, north of Baghdad, 25 insurgents in five vehicles waged an hour-long gun battle with police at a highway checkpoint, killing eight, according to police Lt. Hasan Ali Ibrahim.

Staff writer Josh White in Washington and special correspondents Hassan Shammari in Baqubah and K.I. Ibrahim and Naseer Nouri in Baghdad contributed to this report.