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Coalition Provisional Authority Briefing 5/18

May-19-2004 » Filed Under: 3/2 SBCT

[Link to Full Transcript]

GEN. KIMMITT: [...] In the northern area of operations, coalition forces conducted five offensive operations in western Mosul, targeting anti-coalition cell leaders. Four individuals were detained for interrogation along with several weapons. [...]

Q (Through interpreter.) Al-Khalidi from Al-Iraqiyah. You mentioned in your previous statements that two military bases would be inside the green zone and six outside in Baghdad. What about the governorates? Will all these bases depart or these bases will remain and the matter is limited to Baghdad only?

GEN. KIMMITT: I know that -- (inaudible) -- agreed on we would have two bases inside the green zone and six outside the green zone encircling Baghdad, but again, I think in the near term you're not going to see a significant shift in the basing arrangements for the coalition forces. We will still have forces in Mosul. We will still have forces in Tikrit. The same numbers of forces will be here on the 15th of July that are on here on the 15th of June. There will be no significant movement, transfer, reorganization, rebasing of coalition forces in that short time period of one month. And at this point we are still looking at the same level of forces to remain in Iraq for the near future.

As conditions change, as the security situation changes, hopefully improves, and as the Iraqi security forces grow and are able to take on more responsibility, then that would be the time that we would reevaluate the number of forces and their locations and their arrangements. But that won't be for some time.


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