Baghdad embassy

[Jim D Burns]

I am shocked to hear the news that the thousands of terrified folks in the US embassy in Iraq are being told they cannot leave because it’s politically imperative for them to stay. I have this uneasy feeling we are going to see a mass beheading of thousands of Americans on the evening news because Obama wants to try and save political face and not to be seen as fleeing in the face of the evil he has helped to create.

For the first time in my life I think we may see US personnel desert their posts, and frankly I wouldn’t blame them. This entire fiasco feels like we are nothing more than a petty dictatorship and our people are being forced to remain in place to die for their leader just like the men at Benghazi were left to die so he could win reelection.

Any other past administration whether left or right and I would have felt sure that they would take any action to protect the people at our embassy and would have no issue with them being told to stay. But I doubt this administration will lift a finger to save our people if the walls start crashing down and Baghdad falls. I certainly don’t think he’ll send troops to protect them so they’ll be left to the mercy of terrorists who have already beheaded thousands of Iraqi people this week alone.

Jim

[aaatoysandmore]

Is this a "political" view?

[U2]

ORIGINAL: Jim D Burns

I am shocked to hear the news that the thousands of terrified folks in the US embassy in Iraq are being told they cannot leave because it’s politically imperative for them to stay. I have this uneasy feeling we are going to see a mass beheading of thousands of Americans on the evening news because Obama wants to try and save political face and not to be seen as fleeing in the face of the evil he has helped to create.

For the first time in my life I think we may see US personnel desert their posts, and frankly I wouldn’t blame them. This entire fiasco feels like we are nothing more than a petty dictatorship and our people are being forced to remain in place to die for their leader just like the men at Benghazi were left to die so he could win reelection.

Any other past administration whether left or right and I would have felt sure that they would take any action to protect the people at our embassy and would have no issue with them being told to stay. But I doubt this administration will lift a finger to save our people if the walls start crashing down and Baghdad falls. I certainly don’t think he’ll send troops to protect them so they’ll be left to the mercy of terrorists who have already beheaded thousands of Iraqi people this week alone.

Jim

Get a grip

[Aurelian]

This isn't going to go well......

[Capt. Harlock]

This isn't going to go well....

No, it's not. I will try to avoid any political commentary and focus on the military aspects. The good news is, although the Iraqi army seems to be disintegrating, the chances of ISIS taking Baghdad are still fairly small because the majority Shiites will call out their militias, which still are battle-trained from confronting the U.S. and allied forces during 2003-2011. There is also a significant chance that Iran, which is primarily Shiite, will intervene with weapons, supplies, or even troops.

The bad part, of course, is that this means all-out civil war, much like what is going on in Syria.

[Jim D Burns]

I did not mean for this to be a political thread, though the lives of the people in the embassy are being risked for no other reason than political expediency at this point. They should have been ordered out days ago, but today they were ordered to stay.

ISIS does not need to take Baghdad, all they need to do is surround the city and it’ll all be over in a matter of days/weeks (I doubt there is much food stockpiled in the city). The Iraqi military does not have the capability of breaking a siege any longer and I’m guessing they also no longer have the hardware to face down ISIS in a conventional battle. The problem for the US personnel in the embassy is once Baghdad is surrounded, they are stuck. The recent confiscation of the military hardware in the north has given ISIS a surface to air capability that will close down air traffic to and from Baghdad.

If the president doesn’t get them out now it will be too late. If the current momentum is not halted the city will be isolated in a matter of days.

Jim

[warspite1]

ORIGINAL: Aurelian

This isn't going to go well......

warspite1

What the thread or the situation?

[Orm]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: Aurelian

This isn't going to go well......

warspite1

What the thread or the situation?

I think both go as expected.

But with that said I expect this thread to be locked as soon as their is a administrator logged in.

[wings7]

Fareed Zakaria (CNN) has made some well thought comments on the present situation in Iraq, very informative.

[gradenko2k]

You're making a very explicit call-out to the Benghazi "scandal". That's pretty much as (partisan) political as it gets.

[vonRocko]

What a great job we did "helping" the Iraqis! It's a good thing we got rid of Hussien (the only one able to handle those idiots), the people are so much better off now![X(] We never should have been there to begin with.[:@]

[Mobius]

The silver lining is that Kurds get their own country now.

[Aurelian]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

ORIGINAL: Aurelian

This isn't going to go well......

warspite1

What the thread or the situation?

The thread..

[Aurelian]

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

This isn't going to go well....

No, it's not. I will try to avoid any political commentary and focus on the military aspects. The good news is, although the Iraqi army seems to be disintegrating, the chances of ISIS taking Baghdad are still fairly small because the majority Shiites will call out their militias, which still are battle-trained from confronting the U.S. and allied forces during 2003-2011. There is also a significant chance that Iran, which is primarily Shiite, will intervene with weapons, supplies, or even troops.

The bad part, of course, is that this means all-out civil war, much like what is going on in Syria.

I meant the thread. Political from the get go.

Note the lack of sources for it.

[Aurelian]

ORIGINAL: Jim D Burns

I did not mean for this to be a political thread, though the lives of the people in the embassy are being risked for no other reason than political expediency at this point. They should have been ordered out days ago, but today they were ordered to stay.

Source?

[Kuokkanen]

I haven't followed news lately. What about Baghdad embassy?

[Jim D Burns]

ORIGINAL: Aurelian
Source?

Here’s a CNN report:

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video ... y.cnn.html

While flipping news channels last night one of the people being interviewed about the order to stay even though the embassy staff had requested permission to leave immediately said the reason the administration gave was because it was too politically imperative that they stay.

All the channels were covering the story after the order was announced, which channel the speaker was on I cannot say as I usually flip through all the news channels when I watch news. But as this report says near the end, “for now they are going to stay”.

ISIS is already southwest of Baghdad according to some of the maps I’ve seen on the news covering their advance this morning, we should have left days ago. Mortar rounds are already hitting Baghdad airport.

http://travel.state.gov/content/passpor ... rning.html

Jim

[Jevhaddah]

Sorry, but who never saw this coming after Saddam was toppled?

Veitnam springs to mind...

What a waste.

Lets hope the ordinary Iraqi's who worked for the US/UK/UN get out as well.

Cheers

Jev

[Aurelian]

Your source says that the State Dept is preparing plans to evacuate in the event of total collapse.

Your source, as I expected, says nothing about them "being told they cannot leave because it’s politically imperative for them to stay."

Your source does not say they were "ordered to stay."

Which makes the following suspect at best.

ORIGINAL:  Jim D Burns
I am shocked to hear the news that the thousands of terrified folks in the US embassy in Iraq are being told they cannot leave because it’s politically imperative for them to stay. I have this uneasy feeling we are going to see a mass beheading of thousands of Americans on the evening news because Obama wants to try and save political face and not to be seen as fleeing in the face of the evil he has helped to create.
For the first time in my life I think we may see US personnel desert their posts, and frankly I wouldn’t blame them. This entire fiasco feels like we are nothing more than a petty dictatorship and our people are being forced to remain in place to die for their leader just like the men at Benghazi were left to die so he could win reelection.
Any other past administration whether left or right and I would have felt sure that they would take any action to protect the people at our embassy and would have no issue with them being told to stay. But I doubt this administration will lift a finger to save our people if the walls start crashing down and Baghdad falls. I certainly don’t think he’ll send troops to protect them so they’ll be left to the mercy of terrorists who have already beheaded thousands of Iraqi people this week alone.
Jim

[OttoVonBlotto]

ORIGINAL: Jevhaddah

Sorry, but who never saw this coming after Saddam was toppled?

Veitnam springs to mind...

What a waste.

Lets hope the ordinary Iraqi's who worked for the US/UK/UN get out as well.

Cheers

Jev

Too true 11 years of death and murder for nothing.