British top General says troops are unwelcome in Iraq
{{date|October 13, 2006}}
{{Iraq war}}
The Head of the British Armed forces, the [[w:Chief of the General Staff|Chief of the General Staff]], [[:w:Richard Dannatt|General Sir Richard Dannatt]], has told the ''[[Daily Mail]]'' that troops are unwelcome in [[Iraq]] and that if they are not withdrawn soon, the situation could become catastrophic.

These remarks seem to be in sharp contrast with those of the Prime Minister earlier this year when he said ''"But don't be in any doubt. No-one, but no-one I spoke to [in [[Baghdad]]], from whatever quarter, wanted us to leave precipitately. An arbitrary timetable ie without conditions being right, would be seen for what it would be: weakness."''

General Dannatt told the ''[[w:BBC|BBC]] Radio 4 Today programme''  this morning that he had to ''"speak up for what is right for the Army"'' but that his remarks to the ''Daily Mail''  ''"were neither substantially new or substantially newsworthy"''. He said that the presence of UK troops ''"exacerbates"'' the problems ''"not right across the country, but only in parts of it"''.

The ''BBC'' reported that ''[[w:Downing Street|Downing Street]]'' had issued a short statement in response to the general's comments. It said: ''"It's important that people remember that we are in Iraq at the express wish of the democratically elected Iraqi government, to support them under the mandate of a UN resolution."''

The ''[[w:Scotsman|Scotsman]]'' in a ''Key Quote'' highlights the General saying -  ''"I think history will show that the planning for what happened after the initial successful war fighting phase was poor, probably based more on optimism than sound planning."'' 

The ''[[w:Times|Times]]'' draws attention to Blair's speech at the [[w:Labour Party Conference|Labour Party Conference]] just two weeks ago saying why the troops will have to stay in Iraq - ''"If we retreat now, hand Iraq over to [[w:al-Qaeda|al-Qaeda]] and sectarian death squads and [[Afghanistan]] back to al-Qaeda and the [[w:Taleban|Taleban]], we won't be safer; we will be committing a craven act of surrender that will put our future security in the deepest peril."''

''[[w:Al Jazeera|Al Jazeera]]'' leads with the story, under a picture of a military [[w:ambulance|ambulance]] being loaded, with the headline ''UK army chief pleads for Iraq pull out'', and quotes extracts from the General's interview with the ''Daily Mail'' including: ''"We are in a [[w:Muslim|Muslim]] country and Muslims' views of foreigners in their country are quite clear. As a foreigner, you can be welcomed by being invited in a country, but we weren't invited certainly by those in Iraq at the time. .... The military campaign we fought in 2003 effectively kicked the door in. Whatever consent we may have had in the first place, may have turned to tolerance and has largely turned to intolerance. That is a fact. I don't say that the difficulties we are experiencing round the world are caused by our presence in Iraq, but undoubtedly our presence in Iraq exacerbates them."'' The report concludes with a ''snapshot'' of the chaos in Baghdad by reporting an attack by gunmen on a TV station, when 11 staff were killed in the ''biggest attack yet on the media.''

The ''[[w:Washington Post|Washington Post]]'' carries a report from ''[[w:Associated Press|Associated Press]]'' headed ''‘British Army Chief Who Called for Iraq Withdrawal 'Soon' Denies Rift With Government''' in which the General is reported as saying that by 'soon' he meant a phased withdrawal over two or three years. He is reported as saying to ''[[w:Sky News|Sky News]]'', ''"We'll probably reduce our soldiers over the course of the next year or two or three -- let's wait and see. That's what I mean by sometime soon,"''. He denied that he was attacking government policy saying to BBC radio ''"We don't do surrender. We don't pull down white flags. We're going to see this through."''

Alongside a photograph of British soldiers rushing to the scene of a [[w:helicopter|helicopter]] crash in [[w:Basra|Basra]] May 6 2006, ''[[w:Fox News|Fox News]]'', commenting on the story, says ''"Dannatt's comments are certain to infuriate Blair, who is [[w:President Bush|President Bush's]] key ally in the Iraq war. It is highly unusual for a sitting British military commander to publicly criticize the government's foreign policy. ... Britain's involvement in Iraq has proved highly controversial from the outset. Millions protested on the streets in the lead up to the war in 2003, while high profile [[w:cabinet ministers|cabinet ministers]] have quit the government as a result of [[w:Tony Blair|Tony Blair's]] support for the U.S.-led action."''

''BBC News'' quotes Prime Minister Blair as saying that he agrees with ''"every word"'' the General said and that transcripts of later radio interviews showed Sir Richard was saying "the same as we all are". Subsequently, BBC New 24 at 9pm, reported that when Blair said he agreed with ''"every word"'', he was referring to what the General had been saying in radio and TV interviews this morning and not to the original interview reported in  the ''Daily Mail''. This cleared up a misunderstanding evidenced in discussions among commentators and in ''Any Questions'' this evening. 

The British Army Rumour Service, ARRSE, which describes itself as ''" THE unofficial British Army community website"''. asks viewers to complete the sentence ''"Sir Richard Dannatt is..."''. As at 18,50 13 October, of the 181 responses, 144 agreed that  ''he was absolutely right''  and 26 that he was ''right only from military point of view''. The same site has blogs from troops in theatre.

[[w:Sir Malcolm Rifkind|Sir Malcolm Rifkind]] M.P., interviewed by [[w:Channel4 News|Channel4 News]], said that he agreed with every word the general said, but deplored the fact that he had said it while still a serving officer. Like [[w:Civil Servants|Civil Servants]], members of the [[w:Armed Forces|Armed Forces]] owed allegiance to the democratically elected government of the day and should not express their personal opinions while still in uniform.

The U.S. [[w:White House|White House]] spokesman Tony Snow responded to Friday press briefing questions from reporters by saying that General Danatt's comments were taken out of context, referring to back-pedalling clarifications that came later from Danatt. Snow said, [referring to later interviews conducted this morning], that "he says that's not what he said. ...  he said that he was misquoted and that "''that particular comment [in the original interview] was actually rather largely taken out of context.''''

Two major U.S. media outlets, [[w:ABC|ABC's]] ''[[w:World News with Charles Gibson|World News with Charles Gibson]]'' and ''[[USA Today]]'', remained wary and made no news mention of the controversy ignited by the general's remarks until an official British political response emerged.

The story continues in the British press today, October 14, for example, in the ''Scotsman'' which reveals the it was Des Browne, the [[w:Defence Secretary|Defence Secretary]] who ''put pressure'' on the General to clarify his remarks in the series of media events that took place yesterday morning, the content of which the Prime Minister agreed wholeheartedly. However, many retired military personnel and some still on active service, have expressed their support for the General, in the media, including the now widely quoted ''British Army Rumour Service''. Some correspondents are disturbed to think that the military are becoming too involved in politics and that the authority of Parliament might become undermined. 

== Sources ==

*{{source
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6046332.stm
|title=General seeks UK Iraq withdrawal
|author=
|pub=BBC News Online
|date=October 14, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=1520842006
|title=Military lines up to back general on Iraq
|author=James Kirkup
|pub=The Scotsman
|date=October 14, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/dailymail/home.html?in_page_id=1766
|title=Army chief declares war on Blair: 'We must quit Iraq soon'
|author=
|pub=Daily Mail
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6046822.stm
|title=Army chief defends Iraq comments|author=
|pub=BBC News Online
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1515822006
|title=Army chief at odds with Blair as he calls for troops to 'get out' of Iraq 
|author=Aura Sabadu
|pub=The Scotsman
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2402604,00.html|title=Army chief: I stand by my call for troops to leave Iraq|author=Devika Bhat, Michael Evans, Sam Coates
|pub=Times
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/ED0B5445-C959-4FE3-B232-CB642E7EB258.htm
|title=UK army chief pleads for Iraq pull out|author=
|pub=Al Jazeera
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300102.html
|title=British Army Chief Who Called for Iraq Withdrawal 'Soon' Denies Rift With Government
|author=Robert Barr
|pub=Washington Post
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,220417,00.htm
|title=British Army Head Says Troop Presence in Iraq Making Problems Worse, Calls for Pullout
|author=
|pub=Fox News
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6049126.stm
|title=Blair 'agrees' with UK Army chief
|author=
|pub=BBC News Online
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.arrse.co.uk/cpgn2/index.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=48836#891947|title=CGS says time to go home!|
author=
|pub=The Army Rumour Service
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*Channel4 News broadcast 19.15 13 October

*{{source
|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/10/20061013-10.html|title=White House Press briefing
|author=Tony Snow
|pub=The White House
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://mediamatters.org/items/200610130002 
|title=ABC, USA Today ignored British army commander's call for troop withdrawal
|author=
|pub=Media Matters
|date=October 13, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6046416.stm
|title=Profile General Sir Richard Dannatt|author=
|pub=BBC News Online
|date=October 12, 2006}}

*{{source|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=410175&in_page_id=1770
|title=Sir Richard Dannatt : A very honest General
|author=Sarah Sands
|pub=Daily Mail
|date=October 12, 2006}}

*{{source
|url=http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page9549.asp
|title=Third speech on foreign policy.
|author=Prime Minister Blair
|pub=No 10 Downing Street
|date=May 26, 2006}}

{{publish}}
{{archive-sighted}}
[[Category:Politics and conflicts]]
[[Category:United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Iraq War]]
[[Category:Europe]]
[[Category:Middle East]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Tony Blair]]
[[Category:Baghdad]]
[[Category:Malcolm Rifkind]]
[[Category:Richard Dannatt]]
[[Category:Daily Mail]]
[[Category:The Times (UK)]]
[[Category:USA Today]]
The Head of the British Armed forces, the Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Richard Dannatt, has told the Daily Mail that troops are unwelcome in Iraq and that if they are not withdrawn soon, the situation could become catastrophic.

These remarks seem to be in sharp contrast with those of the Prime Minister earlier this year when he said "But don't be in any doubt. No-one, but no-one I spoke to in Baghdad, from whatever quarter, wanted us to leave precipitately. An arbitrary timetable ie without conditions being right, would be seen for what it would be: weakness."

General Dannatt told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme  this morning that he had to "speak up for what is right for the Army" but that his remarks to the Daily Mail  "were neither substantially new or substantially newsworthy". He said that the presence of UK troops "exacerbates" the problems "not right across the country, but only in parts of it".

The BBC reported that Downing Street had issued a short statement in response to the general's comments. It said: "It's important that people remember that we are in Iraq at the express wish of the democratically elected Iraqi government, to support them under the mandate of a UN resolution."

The Scotsman in a Key Quote highlights the General saying -  "I think history will show that the planning for what happened after the initial successful war fighting phase was poor, probably based more on optimism than sound planning." 

The Times draws attention to Blair's speech at the Labour Party Conference just two weeks ago saying why the troops will have to stay in Iraq - "If we retreat now, hand Iraq over to al-Qaeda and sectarian death squads and Afghanistan back to al-Qaeda and the Taleban, we won't be safer; we will be committing a craven act of surrender that will put our future security in the deepest peril."

Al Jazeera leads with the story, under a picture of a military ambulance being loaded, with the headline UK army chief pleads for Iraq pull out, and quotes extracts from the General's interview with the Daily Mail including: "We are in a Muslim country and Muslims' views of foreigners in their country are quite clear. As a foreigner, you can be welcomed by being invited in a country, but we weren't invited certainly by those in Iraq at the time. .... The military campaign we fought in 2003 effectively kicked the door in. Whatever consent we may have had in the first place, may have turned to tolerance and has largely turned to intolerance. That is a fact. I don't say that the difficulties we are experiencing round the world are caused by our presence in Iraq, but undoubtedly our presence in Iraq exacerbates them." The report concludes with a snapshot of the chaos in Baghdad by reporting an attack by gunmen on a TV station, when 11 staff were killed in the biggest attack yet on the media.

The Washington Post carries a report from Associated Press headed ‘British Army Chief Who Called for Iraq Withdrawal 'Soon' Denies Rift With Government' in which the General is reported as saying that by 'soon' he meant a phased withdrawal over two or three years. He is reported as saying to Sky News, "We'll probably reduce our soldiers over the course of the next year or two or three -- let's wait and see. That's what I mean by sometime soon,". He denied that he was attacking government policy saying to BBC radio "We don't do surrender. We don't pull down white flags. We're going to see this through."

Alongside a photograph of British soldiers rushing to the scene of a helicopter crash in Basra May 6 2006, Fox News, commenting on the story, says "Dannatt's comments are certain to infuriate Blair, who is President Bush's key ally in the Iraq war. It is highly unusual for a sitting British military commander to publicly criticize the government's foreign policy. ... Britain's involvement in Iraq has proved highly controversial from the outset. Millions protested on the streets in the lead up to the war in 2003, while high profile cabinet ministers have quit the government as a result of Tony Blair's support for the U.S.-led action."

BBC News quotes Prime Minister Blair as saying that he agrees with "every word" the General said and that transcripts of later radio interviews showed Sir Richard was saying "the same as we all are". Subsequently, BBC New 24 at 9pm, reported that when Blair said he agreed with "every word", he was referring to what the General had been saying in radio and TV interviews this morning and not to the original interview reported in  the Daily Mail. This cleared up a misunderstanding evidenced in discussions among commentators and in Any Questions this evening. 

The British Army Rumour Service, ARRSE, which describes itself as " THE unofficial British Army community website". asks viewers to complete the sentence "Sir Richard Dannatt is...". As at 18,50 13 October, of the 181 responses, 144 agreed that  he was absolutely right  and 26 that he was right only from military point of view. The same site has blogs from troops in theatre.

Sir Malcolm Rifkind M.P., interviewed by Channel4 News, said that he agreed with every word the general said, but deplored the fact that he had said it while still a serving officer. Like Civil Servants, members of the Armed Forces owed allegiance to the democratically elected government of the day and should not express their personal opinions while still in uniform.

The U.S. White House spokesman Tony Snow responded to Friday press briefing questions from reporters by saying that General Danatt's comments were taken out of context, referring to back-pedalling clarifications that came later from Danatt. Snow said, referring to later interviews conducted this morning, that "he says that's not what he said. ...  he said that he was misquoted and that "that particular comment in the original interview was actually rather largely taken out of context.

Two major U.S. media outlets, ABC's World News with Charles Gibson and USA Today, remained wary and made no news mention of the controversy ignited by the general's remarks until an official British political response emerged.

The story continues in the British press today, October 14, for example, in the Scotsman which reveals the it was Des Browne, the Defence Secretary who put pressure on the General to clarify his remarks in the series of media events that took place yesterday morning, the content of which the Prime Minister agreed wholeheartedly. However, many retired military personnel and some still on active service, have expressed their support for the General, in the media, including the now widely quoted British Army Rumour Service. Some correspondents are disturbed to think that the military are becoming too involved in politics and that the authority of Parliament might become undermined. 

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*Channel4 News broadcast 19.15 13 October

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Politics and conflicts United Kingdom Iraq War Europe Middle East United States Tony Blair Baghdad Malcolm Rifkind Richard Dannatt Daily Mail The Times (UK) USA Today