How the British are defeated in Basra (BBC on youtube)

[oblivious]

How the British are defeated in Basra (BBC)
At 1:25mins:
"What statistically we didn't hear to day but which I found from people in the Ministry of Defence, is that the Palace and the Shat al-Arab hotel were the second and third most attacked places in the whole of Iraq by rocket and mortar fire in the second half of last year. In other words, only one American base was above them. So they were under intense pressure. Inevitable the people doing that... will insist that they were the ones who got the British army out of the city."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZ8ZWK8Pwoc

Two British bases in Basra bombarded with missiles
Feb 22, 2007
Basra - Two British military bases in Basra were bombarded with missiles in the past 24 hours, an Iraqi security source said Thursday. The two British bases, located in downtown Basra and in the city's Shat al-Arab hotel, were bombed Wednesday night and early Thursday morning, the source added. ...

Analysis: Iraqi pilot's survival epic-2
BASRA, Iraq, Feb. 22 (UPI)
...The British base at Basra airport is rocketed with startling frequency. Since September, when Scifer arrived, they have been attacked 76 times with an average of four rockets each time. They can be that precise because when there is an air raid warning the team gathers in a bunker, known as the conference room. On its walls are scrawled notes from each "conference' - who was there, what time the rockets came, and how many fell.
http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20070220-015133-3910r

February 10, 2007
British soldier shot in the chest during routine patrol in Basra
...Today, life has become so precarious for the British that all movement of personnel is conducted by helicopter and at night. The main palace complex, which houses soldiers and government officials, is permanently under siege from rockets and mortars.

Every building is protected by sandbags or blast-proof concrete walls. Helmets and body armour are compulsory. Diplomats are not allowed to leave the compound. Soldiers rarely venture beyond the perimeter in anything less conspicuous than a large armoured force, usually only deployed in battle. “Calling this a peacekeeping operation is ridiculous,” said one officer. “This is war.”

Even mundane missions are difficult, dangerous and costly. The patrol we joined, which led to the soldier being shot by a sniper, was providing protection for a small police training unit checking on an Iraqi police station. At the cost of one near fatality and the resources of dozens of troops and two helicopters, a local police commander received money to buy mattresses for his officers.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article1362715.ece

February 09, 2007
Double Basra attack: one British soldier killed, ten injured
British forces in Iraq were dealt a double blow today when suspected Shia militants launched simultaneous attacks that left one British soldier dead and ten injured, four of them seriously.

...At almost exactly the same time a mortar or rocket exploded in the British base inside Basra city, located in what used to be Saddam Hussein’s presidential palace. A spokesman said that seven troops were injured - three seriously - as well as an Iraqi employee. A Ministry of Defence spokesman in London added that two of the injured were in a “very serious” condition.

The base comes under almost daily attack and commanders had been expecting a missile or rocket to be fired by the end of the week. The base is heavily protected by concrete blast walls and sand bags. It is rare for so many troops to be injured by a single explosion.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article1359093.ece

Rocket attack on UK base in Basra
19 January 2007
Six British soldiers have been hurt after rockets and mortars struck a military base in southern Iraq, the Ministry of Defence has said. The MoD said the camp came under fire from rockets, mortars and small arms on three occasions on Thursday evening. ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6278015.stm

Revealed: The true extent of Britain's failure in Basra (The Independent)
...There is no doubt the deterioration in the situation is contrary to the rosy picture presented by Downing Street. Messrs Knights and Williams note: "By September 2006, British forces needed to deploy a convoy of Warrior armoured vehicles to ferry police trainers to a single police station and deliver a consignment of toys to a nearby hospital." Some British army positions were being hit by more mortar bombs than anywhere else in Iraq. There was continual friction with local political factions.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2296829.ece

Army commanders wanted bigger and faster troop pullout
Military chiefs had been pushing for much bigger cuts in the number of British troops in Iraq than those announced yesterday by Tony Blair, defence officials made clear last night.

For months, army commanders have suggested that their presence on the streets of Basra was doing more harm than good, that it was time to lower expectations and let Iraqi forces take charge of security. They were forced to agree to a more gradual reduction partly in deference to US sensitivities. .....

State of the coalition
Albania 120 non-combat troops, mainly patrolling airport in Mosul; no plans to withdraw

Armenia 46 soldiers, serving as medics, engineers and drivers under Polish command; staying to end of 2007

Australia Around 550 troops training security forces in southern Iraq

Azerbaijan 150 troops; no plans to withdraw

Bosnia-Herzegovina 36 soldiers

Bulgaria 155 in total 120 non-combat troops guarding refugee camp near Baghdad, 35 support personnel

Czech Republic 99 troops

Denmark 460 troops patrolling Basra; to be withdrawn by August

El Salvador 380 soldiers in Hillah; no immediate plans to withdraw

Estonia 35 troops under US command in the Baghdad area

Georgia 900 combat, medical and support personnel under US command in Baqouba; no plans to withdraw or reduce contingent

Kazakhstan 27 military engineers; no plans to withdraw

Latvia 125 troops under Polish command in Diwaniya

Lithuania 60 troops, part of a Danish battalion near Basra

Macedonia 40 troops in Taji

Moldova 11 bomb-defusing experts returned home at end of January

Mongolia 160 troops; no plans to withdraw

Netherlands 15 soldiers as part of Nato mission training police, army officers; no plans to withdraw

Poland 900 non-combat troops; commands multinational force; mission extended to end of 2007

Romania about 600 troops, most serving under UK command; prime minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu wants them withdrawn

Slovenia 4 instructors training Iraqi security forces

South Korea 2,300 troops in Irbil; plans to bring home 1,100; parliament insists on complete withdrawal by end of 2007

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2018287,00.html

[malaise]

1. But, but, but

Cheney sid their withdrawal was proof of success :shrug:

Great post. K & R.

[oblivious]

2. It sounds like they've been basically holed up in their reinforced bases.

Waiting for an opportune time to get the hell out.

[malaise]

3. Correct. n/t