Four Al Qaeda Prisoners Escape U.S. Forces In Iraq

U.S. and Iraqi officials announced Thursday that four prisoners being guarded by American troops escaped from a maximum-security prison in Baghdad.

According to a military statement, U.S. troops patrolling the prison found two detainees attempting to escape but when they conducted a sweep of the entire facility, four prisoners remained unaccounted for. The four fugitives, with ties to al Qaeda, remain at large after a breaking out of Karkh Prison, formerly called Camp Cropper. 

“U.S. Forces-Iraq, Iraqi Security Forces and the [Ministry of Justice] are working to apprehend these individuals,” said Maj. Gen. Jerry Cannon, head of American detainee operations in Iraq. “This event is under investigation.

The Associated Press reports that the breakout is an “embarrassment” for the U.S. military after it handed over control of all detention facilities they ran to the Iraqi government. At the request of the Iraqi government, American forces retained control of the most dangerous prisoners, including those with ties to terrorist groups or Sadaam Husein’s former regime.

This event marks the second escape since the U.S. handed custody of the detention facility to Iraq. Just seven days after the transfer, four other al Qaeda linked prisoners escaped.

Petraeus and Crocker face Congress for a second day

The House Armed Services and House Foreign Affairs committees hosted Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, the Multinational Force Iraq commander and ambassador in Iraq respectively.

The testimony and questions did not differ significantly from their testimony the two men gave in the Senate. In fact, both Petraeus and Crocker read their opening statements verbatim at all four hearings where they were called to testify. There was less protest of the testimony in the House committees than had been in the Senate, only one protester was escorted out of the Armed Service hearing. And there were no visible protesters at the Foreign Relations committee.

In the Armed Services Committee, responding to questions from Mike McIntyre (D-NC), Crocker spoke of an ongoing review process for looking at the 18 agreed-upon legislative benchmarks and agreed to inform the committee of the results of the review when completed next week. So far only three of the benchmark legislation has been approved by the Iraqi parliament and only one of those has been implemented. Crocker also emphasized that Iraq is a sovereign nation and that Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki is able to make his own decisions, as made clear by recent action in Basra, and that if Maliki were to exclude Muqutada al Sadr from the political progress that is his prerogative.



Also in the Armed Services Committee, Rep.Randy Forbes (R-VA) questions the worth of the war to the average housewife who worries about groceries and the high cost of gas. Petraeus responded that "what happens in Iraq has ripple effects that will ripple into the United States." He noted that if there is an interruption to oil flows, there will bean even higher price at the gas tank. He said that the war is worth it because it inhibits al-Qaida's ability to establish a base in Iraq and conducts further attacks on the United States.

In the Foreign Relation Dan Burton(R-IN)asked whether a "precipitous pull out" from Iraq were to happen a vacuum were to be created only al-Qaida could fill it. Crocker answered that given conditions at this time, if the U.S. were to withdraw all soldiers in six months, there would be a downward spiral and al-Qaida would benefit, possibly establishing a base in the Middle East.

In the only heated exchange, Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) asked about the strategic forces agreement and whether it would tie the hands of the next president if that president were to advocate a radical policy change and attempt to withdraw troops immediately. He allowed Crocker one word and that was, "No." Questioning Petraeus Sherman asked whether he would prepare upon the election of a new president to fulfill their policy. Petraeus said that he can only serve one boss and one policy at a time, but that the military would have a plan for a more expedient withdrawal. Petraeus said that he was uncomfortable with the line of questioning, reasserting his belief in civilian control of the military.

Pelosi and House chairs decry Iraq's unpaid reconstruction tab

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was joined by House Armed Services Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO), House Foreign Affairs Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA), and Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) in a press conference to talk about the extended cost of the war in Iraq in anticipation of testimony by the U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker next week. The members focused on the failure of the Iraqi government to finance reconstruction and hit legislative benchmarks in addition to the strains on the U.S. military and domestic spending.



Pelosi began by quoting Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said earlier in the week that Afghanistan is an "economy of force campaign" and that there are unmet needs in Afghanistan because of the high force levels in Iraq. Mullen has continually referenced the "stress on the force" caused by long deployment, short dwell times, and fronts in Afghanistan and Iraq. All the members said that the administrations' priorities are mixed up and that domestic issues are suffering as a result of the Iraq war.

Skelton praised the troops and military leadership but said regarding the readiness of the troops, "You're wearing 'em out. The strain is heavy!" He said that extended tours and decreased re-enlistment numbers are wearing the force thin and that worries over the readiness of the force for other unforeseen conflict keep him up at night.

Pelosi said that the only thing she does not want to hear come through Petraeus testimony is "a glorification of what has just happened in Basra." She said that she doesn't want to hear that the Maliki government was showing initiative or winning when they didn't consult wit the U.S. forces and ended up having to accept peace terms from Muqtada al Sadr, whom she described as being "dictated to" by Iran.

Emanuel in closing said, "Remember this is the war that was supposed to pay for itself with Iraqi oil revenue."
Pelosi chimed in, "It was supposed to cost $50 billion dollars," and then referring to the Iraqi government, "And they haven't paid for anything."