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General: Quick withdrawal risky for Baghdad

WASHINGTON — Though violence in Iraq has declined, withdrawing U.S. troops too quickly would spell failure in some parts of the capital, a top general said Monday.

Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, commander in Baghdad, said progress made toward securing the city in recent months is “fledgling, fragile and not guaranteed.”

He said that although violence is down, it has dropped because the troop buildup ordered by President Bush in January has made it possible to have a “force presence that is almost throughout the city” — that is, coalition and Iraqi forces, supplemented by so-called “Concerned Local Citizens.”

“There is absolutely a risk of going too quickly,” he told a Pentagon press conference by video hookup from Baghdad. “It’s clear that pulling out too quickly, before the Iraqis are truly able to take over these areas independently, would be very risky and there are some areas in the city where, at this point, it would fail.”

Attacks in Iraq are at their lowest levels since the first year of the American invasion in 2003, finally opening a window for reconciliation among rival sects, Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, the No. 2 commander in Iraq, said Sunday.

Pentagon officials said Monday that there are now about 160,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, about 30,000 more than in January. Commanders are planning to draw down the number to about 135,000 by July. Although Bush has not committed yet to going lower, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has expressed hope it could drop to 100,000 by next December.

Fil said he’s comfortable with the current plan, which is “simply thinning the ranks ... in areas that are going well.”

“There is no question in my mind that an immediate pullout too quickly would be a serious threat to stability in Baghdad,” he said.

He said that although al-Qaida fighters “are not controlling any part of Baghdad,” they are still “lurking in the shadows.” Criminal networks also remain “very potent threats.” And coalition forces are still working in the west of the city against “special groups” — Shiite militants backed by Iran.