General: Number of capable Iraqi battalions falls

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

The number of Iraqi battalions capable of combat without U.S. support has dropped from three to one, the top American commander in Iraq told Congress today, prompting Republicans to question whether U.S. troops will be able to withdraw next year.

Gen. George Casey, softening his previous comments that a "fairly substantial" pull out could begin next spring and summer, told lawmakers that troops could begin coming home from Iraq next year depending on conditions during and after the upcoming elections there.

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So, lemme get this straight. The US cannot pull out, says the White House, until the Iraqi army is capable of defending the country from the insurgency, and that is supposed to happen soon. But the Iraqi army is getting smaller, not bigger. Something about this doesn't seem quite right.

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