Iraq

The two big news stories out of Iraq are the "trench," which security experts are already saying won't help that much, and the reduction of troops in Anbar.

The US military denies the trench speaking more of restricted access.

On Anbar, I just keep wondering how it must feel to be deployed there. They know it's not going well, and, in essence, they've just been told that they are to fight a holding/occupying action, that there is no intention to defeat their enemy. How do you think that feels?

From the WaPo article on the partial withdrawal.

Implicit in Chiarelli's remarks on Anbar was the idea that, given limited overall troop numbers in Iraq, American commanders must make difficult trade-offs as they concentrate forces in one troubled region at a time. "There's not a commander in the world who wouldn't say he could use more forces," he said.

Or maybe from the Robert Burns AP version,

In fact, they have shifted some troops from Anbar to Baghdad this summer, not because security conditions are improving in the western province but because they are deteriorating even more in the capital area. ....

In fact, they have shifted some troops from Anbar to Baghdad this summer, not because security conditions are improving in the western province but because they are deteriorating even more in the capital area.

(Reuters) Iraqi police found 47 more bodies of death squad victims dumped in Baghdad overnight.

(USAToday) The US-Iraqi Baghdad offensive tries to steer clear of Sadr and the Mahdi militia. Sadr is playing this like a pro. Without fighting, he is negotiating for more power.

(Reuters) No story on this one, just this brief mention in the factbox.

BAGHDAD - A U.S. soldier was killed in a bomb attack on his foot patrol just northwest of Baghdad late on Thursday, the U.S. military said in statement. The deaths of five other U.S. troops were announced on Thursday in four separate incidents.

This makes me so sick. Six US soldiers die in service to their country, and this is what they get in the press.