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Honduran and American soldiers
The dhimmi appeaser ranks are growing fast. Also, there is information below about how the sudden Spanish withdrawal endangers all Coalition troops in Iraq. From CNN, with thanks to Jeffrey Imm:
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Honduras has confirmed that it will join Spain in withdrawing its troops from Iraq "in the shortest possible time.""I have told the coalition countries that the troops are going to return from Iraq," President Ricardo Maduro said in a speech on national television and radio Monday, Reuters reports.
"I have ordered ... the carrying out of the decision taken in the shortest possible time and under safe conditions for our troops."
Around 370 soldiers from Honduras, a strong U.S. ally in Central America, have been clearing mines and providing medical care in central Iraq. ...
In a phone call to Spain's new Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Bush "stressed the importance of carefully considering future actions to avoid giving false comfort to terrorists."
Bush also "urged that the Spanish withdrawal take place in a coordinated manner that does not put at risk other coalition forces," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said.
One day after being sworn in as Prime Minister, Zapatero announced Sunday he will withdraw Spain's 1,300 troops from Iraq as soon as possible.
Jose Bono, the new Spanish defense minister, said Monday it would take less than six weeks to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq, but did not say when the withdrawal would begin.
He told reporters a planeload of Spanish troops who are specialists in the logistics of moving troops was headed for the region, and would bring some of the "tactical troops" back to Spain.
"It would be imprudent to talk of six to eight weeks because it's going to be less," The Associated Press reports Bono telling a news conference after the newly-elected government's first Cabinet meeting.
Normally, Spain has 1,300 troops in Iraq, but there are currently 1,430, because fresh troops had been brought in during recent weeks as part of a routine rotation.
Spain's sudden announcement has left other members of the multinational force scrambling to come up with a plan for keeping the peace in what has become one of the most tumultuous regions of the country.
Poland, which commands the 23-nation force of 9,500 troops in south-central Iraq, said it was taken by surprise by the announcement.
The Polish Defense Ministry said in a statement that commanders are now working on transferring "tasks from the Spaniards while maintaining the operational capability of the division and ensuring the safety of the soldiers."
The news also triggered criticism from some coalition members, such as Australia.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer worried that if other countries followed Madrid's example, "then Iraq would be left without security and Iraq would become a haven for terrorists."
Before Zapatero's Socialist Party upset victory following terrorist bombings in Madrid in March, Spain had been one of the staunchest U.S. allies in Iraq.
Despite the Spanish announcement, McClellan said: "The coalition in Iraq remains strong."
Earlier, coalition military spokesman Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt told reporters the withdrawal of Spanish troops from the holy city of Najaf in southern Iraq would not create a "security vacuum" in the region.
"They are a significant portion of what happens down in Multinational Division Central South, but numerically those are numbers that should be able to be replaced in a fairly short order."
The general said coalition military officials began considering their options when Zapatero ousted Aznar from his post as Spain's prime minister.
"Obviously, there are a number of courses of action that we'll take," Kimmitt said, "but there will not be a security vacuum in that area at any time."
Zapatero, meanwhile, can enjoy the fruits of appeasement: his new masters are pleased — for the moment:
But the news pleased Muqtada al-Sadr, the influential Shiite cleric who is hiding in the holy city of Najaf, where the Spanish troops are deployed,"We have noticed that the coalition has pulled back," al-Sadr spokesman Sheikh Qais al-Khazaali said Monday.
"Muqtada al-Sadr has ordered the Mehdi Army to stop all attacks on the Spanish troops after they decided to pull out of Iraq."
Posted by Robert at April 20, 2004 7:37 AM
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Jihadists are becoming a presence in Latin America. As they have a similar agenda with the Leftist guerillas and Chavez, a Castro wannabe, with whom they are teaming, it is no wonder that Honduras wants to play it safe. A sad reality : the world-wide schoolyard bullies and thugs are intimidating another nation in a part of the world that has seen so much trouble.
Posted by: epg at April 20, 2004 11:30 AMi must say that bush is a real stand-up guy. he set aside political differences to subtly warn zapatero of the consequences of spain's new policy. people should remember this when in desperation at some future point spain reaches out for our help to protect them against what is coming.
Posted by: ted at April 20, 2004 12:00 PMI thought Honduras, like most Central American countries, had spent decades playing what you call 'dhimmi' to the Americans, and what have they got out of it? I can't understand what they are doing in Iraq anyway when they are a small, poor country which has enough problems of its own, not least the petty (and not so petty) criminals which the Americans keep dumping throughout central America. The whole "coalition" is a gloss on a war being promoted by the American government, and I see more countries pulling out when they realise that the troops are going to be in there for years. I think only Britain will stay in and that is only because of our lousy politicians (Howard will be even worse than Tory B Liar if he gets in, God forbid).
Posted by: Yusuf Smith at April 20, 2004 1:12 PMYusuf Smith - You have misused the word dhimmi, meaning a non-Mulim debased and humiliated by a Muslim.
Posted by: epg at April 20, 2004 9:42 PMThe contingent of Honduran Soldiers are being pulled out of Iraq. Oh this is just great... Now US Soldiers will have to clean their own latrines. And what's next? Since the Spanish troops pulled out the Americans have had to start polishing their own boots again.. Can it get any worse?
Posted by: Mahdi Al-Dajjal at April 21, 2004 12:18 AMyeah.. so the army left in Iraq is just the real OCCUPATION ARMY. I think, this is undisputatable. We are now knew the REAL TRUTH, who are human right heros and who are the violator, who are the terrorist and who are the real victim.
Thanks..
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