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thedrifter
04-13-07, 03:52 PM
General: Recent bombings strengthen resolve
By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Friday Apr 13, 2007 12:06:54 EDT

The twin Thursday bombings in Baghdad, one of them inside the U.S.-fortified Green Zone, are an indication that U.S. and Iraqi forces “still have a long way to go” in the effort to stabilize the country, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq said Friday.

“Frankly, yesterday was a bad day,” Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno told Pentagon reporters via a satellite hookup. “A very bad day.”

The first explosion, caused by a car bomb, killed eight people and destroyed the Sarafiya Bridge, formerly the main span over the Tigris River in the northern part of Baghdad.

The second was detonated by a suicide bomber in the cafeteria of the Iraqi parliament, inside Baghdad’s Green Zone, the headquarters of U.S. forces, the seat of Iraqi government and the most tightly secured area in the country. U.S. forces said one person, an Iraqi lawmaker, was killed, and 22 were wounded.

Odierno, commander of Multi-National Corps-Iraq, said the Green Zone attack “has only strengthened the resolve of the government of Iraq.” He said an Iraqi investigation is underway to determine how Green Zone security was breached and to recommend future steps to prevent a recurrence. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior has assumed security at the parliament building, Odierno said.

Angry post-attack comments from Shiite and Sunni legislators that there are essentially no safe areas in Iraq and that the ongoing effort to secure Baghdad is “dead” were probably just made out of frustration, Odierno said.

“It’s frustrating when something like that happens,” Odierno said. But, he added, “All those statements do is encourage the insurgents. They encourage al-Qaida. What we have to do is stick hard together, continue to work side by side, again, to provide security to the people. Overall, we are starting to do that. But we are going to have bad days.”

Two months ago, the Bush administration launched a troop surge of five brigade combat teams — two have yet to arrive — aimed at stabilizing Baghdad and, it hopes, the rest of the country. All units are expected to be in place and operational by early June. Pentagon officials have declined to say how long the surge will last, saying an assessment will be made in August about how well it’s working.

Ellie