Monday, January 06, 2020

Liz Sly (WASHINGTON POST) on US military letter to Iraqi government


Update to Liz Sly's Tweets below, this is from Lolita C. Baldor and Robert Burns (AP):

For a few tense hours Monday, the United States appeared to have announced that American troops were pulling out of Baghdad after nearly 17 years.
Turns out, it was just an “honest mistake.”
“Here’s the bottom line, this was a mistake,” Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said as he tried to unravel a knot of miscommunication that came at a time of already soaring tensions with the Middle East.




BREAKING: The US military sends a letter to the Iraqi military announcing the “onward movement” of US troops “in due deference to the sovereignty of Iraq & as requested by the Iraqi Parliament & the Iraqi PM”. It’s a withdrawal.
12:10 PM - 6 Jan 2020
369 replies2,479 retweets3,259 likes


    1. New conversation

    1.  7 hours ago
      Though the letter doesn’t bear a signature, the US military has confirmed its authenticity. Not clear yet whether it’s a full or partial withdrawal, but the reference to deference to the Iraqi parliament’s decision makes it seem pretty definitive.
      43 replies352 retweets956 likes




    2.  5 hours ago
      Defense Secretary Esper says there is "no decision to withdraw." U.S. officials say there is a repositioning of forces for purposes of force protection. But the letter clearly states there will be "movement out of Iraq." It's hard not to see this as a prelude to withdrawal.
      22 replies209 retweets641 likes




    3.  5 hours ago
      General Milley has just said the letter regarding troop movements out of Iraq was a draft, and releasing it was a "mistake." It was however delivered to the Iraqi military. It seems the U.S. military is as confused as everyone else about what their intentions are.
      251 replies1,274 retweets2,368 likes




    4.  5 hours ago
      Perhaps the ultimate irony: the letter describing U.S. troop movements "out of Iraq", leaked to Iraqi media by the PM's office, was first released by the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq on its TV channel. AAH blew up many US troops & its leader is a US-designated terrorist.
      32 replies255 retweets555 likes














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