The Occupation needs some Re Thinking, Me thinks.

rummy, condi, georgie... maybe the time has come to admit that some mistakes have been made. admit that this thing has been a mess. take out sadr and the militants, call in more troops, fight the militants tooth and nail and clean up iraq. no more half measures.

Anarchy across Iraq

By Colin Freeman, Evening Standard, in Baghdad

British soldiers killed 15 militants as Iraq descended into new levels of anarchy today.


The Iraqis died in a string of clashes with UK forces over the past 48 hours in Basra and Amarah as a Shia uprising led by firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr swept through the country. More than 20 Iraqis were injured in Amarah and Basra - the main cities in the British-controlled sector of the country. Twenty-four Coalition soldiers, six of them British, were hurt, none seriously, the Ministry of Defence said.

The confrontations came as efforts to keep peace went into meltdown and America said it is planning a massive troop reinforcement. In the most widespread violence to hit Iraq since the last days of the war, Coalition troops faced clashes in almost all the main cities.

In Nasariyah, 15 Iraqis died as they fought up to 500 Italian troops, of whom 12 were wounded. Militants loyal to al-Sadr seized key bridges across the Euphrates.

Spanish troops clashed with militants in the holy city of Najaf and came under mortar fire near Diwaniyah.

A massive firefight was reported as US forces sealed off Fallujah, seen as the centre of Sunni resistance to the occupation, where four US contractors were killed and mutilated last week. In and around the town at least four US Marines were reported dead.

Three US soldiers died in clashes with al-Sadr supporters in the north of Baghdad, the day after Apache helicopter gunships were called in to attack rioters.

A Ukrainian soldier is also reported to have been killed and six injured.