 A group of former senior Iraqi Baathists, including one-time general Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, direct and finance rebels in Iraq out of Syria "with impunity," the top US commander in Iraq said Thursday. "That needs to stop," General George Casey said here.
| Does that mean that if it doesn't, we'll stop it ourselves? |
"We have fairly good information that there are senior former Baathists, members of what they call the 'New Regional Command,' operating out of Syria with impunity, and providing direction and financing to the insurgency in Iraq," Casey said. Ibrahim was moving "back and forth" between Syria and Iraq, he said. Casey's comments at a Pentagon press conference echoed charges earlier Thursday by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and came a day after President George W. Bush warned Syria and Iran that meddling in Iraq's internal affairs was "not in their interest." The general also repeated longstanding charges that the movement of foreign fighters into Iraq was facilitated through Syria, although he stopped short of accusing the Syrian government of being directly involved. "I've not seen direct Syrian government involvement in that facilitation but it is coming through Syria. And I do believe they have the capability to stop it if they had the will to," he said. |