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Dubik was the top commander at Ft. Lewis until his recent assignment in Iraq.
FORT LEWIS, Pierce County — For three years, thousands of Army soldiers from this Western Washington post patrolled the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. More than 40 lost their lives.
With the security situation improved, the last of three Fort Lewis Stryker brigades withdrew in mid-2006, but during the past year, as U.S. forces clamped down on al-Qaida activities farther south, Mosul has once again emerged as a violent center of insurgent activities, a key U.S. commander said on Thursday.
The experience in Mosul offers a cautionary note as the U.S. military nears the fifth anniversary of the Iraq war amid a drawdown of American troops.
"Al-Qaida realizes that this is an area they want to retain, and they're fighting pretty hard for it." said Lt. Gen. James Dubik, the former Fort Lewis commander who now heads U.S. Army efforts to rebuild Iraqi forces.
Dubik spoke from Baghdad's Green Zone in a videoconference with Washington state reporters.
He cited a major expansion of Iraq's forces, including the addition of 44,700 Iraqi army personnel and 29,800 local police in the past six months. He also cited declines in civilian deaths and the overall levels of violence.
But Dubik said the gains are fragile. Two large suicide attacks this month caused 104 civilian deaths, and a concerted effort by insurgents has reignited sectarian fighting, he said.
He also predicted some tough spring fighting for U.S. troops as they continue their push against insurgents.
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