White House Extends Deployment of Troops Serving in Iraq as Violence Shakes U.S. Occupation

Interview with Nancy Lessin and Charlie Richardson, Military Families Speak Out, conducted by Scott Harris

In the month of April, more than 115 U.S. soldiers were killed during intensifying combat across Iraq. Over a thousand Iraqis have also lost their lives during the same period in the two most conflicted areas of the country -- Fallujah and Najaf -- where standoffs between American troops and insurgents have continued for weeks.

As the White House sticks to its original schedule for the symbolic handover of sovereignty to an as-yet unknown provisional government in Iraq on June 30, the Pentagon is sending more troops to Iraq and extending the duty of American soldiers already deployed in the country. But even after the handover of sovereignty, Washington will remain firmly in control for years to come. Marc Grossman, under-secretary of state for political affairs affirmed recently that the U.S. will not tolerate any decisions made by a transitional Iraqi government, which are at variance with American foreign policy.



During the past year, when over 700 U.S. service men and women have died in Iraq, the White House has prevented the media from taking photos of the flag-draped coffins of soldiers returning to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. But through a Freedom of Information request made by www.thememoryhole.org website, the Pentagon was forced to release several hundred such photos. Shortly after, the Seattle Times published on their front page, a photo of coffins taken by Pentagon contractor Tami Silicio, who was later fired.

Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Nancy Lessin and Charlie Richardson, of the group Military Families Speak Out, about the ongoing war in Iraq, the Pentagon's extension of combat duty for U.S. troops and the possibility of a military draft. The couple's son was, until last year, deployed with the U.S. Marine Corps in Iraq.

Visit the group's websites at www.mfso.org or www.bringthemhomenow.org

Related links:



Editorials Back Release of Soldier Coffin Photos" by Greg Mitchell, the Editor and Publisher, April 26, 2004

Bush Afraid to let American People See Deadly Reality of Needless War," by Bill Gallagher, the Niagara Falls Reporter, April 27, 2004

Troubled U.S. Timetable for Iraq's Transition to a Provisional Government Linked to Bush Re-Election Campaign," Between The Lines Interview, week ending Jan. 30, 2004

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