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Pentagon had no detailed plans for postwar Iraq: Report
Washington, Juy 12: Pentagon planners failed to develop detailed plans for postwar Iraq because they were convinced Iraqis would welcome us troops and that a hand-picked exile leader would replace Saddam Hussein and impose order, `Knight Ridder` newspapers reported today.
Washington, Juy 12: Pentagon planners failed to develop detailed plans for postwar Iraq because they were convinced Iraqis would welcome us troops and that a hand-picked exile leader would replace Saddam Hussein and impose order, 'Knight Ridder' newspapers reported today.
The exclusive report quoted more than a dozen current and former senior government officials, many of whom linked a lack of US planning to the current chaos in Iraq.
"There was no real planning for postwar Iraq," said one former senior official. Most of those interviewed requested anonymity.
Civilian planners at the pentagon's secretive office of special plans hoped to transform Iraq into an ally of Israel, remove a potential threat to the oil trade in the region and encircle Iran with US friends and allies, the report said.
It also quoted officials describing efforts by that office to sideline and disregard other US government departments' planning for a postwar Iraq.
Putting Iraqi exile leader Ahmed Chalabi in power in Baghdad was a key part of this vision, according to the officials.
Undersecretary of Defence for Policy Douglas Feith, the head of the Pentagon planning group, denied the plan to install Chalabi, but Pentagon advisor Richard Perle confirmed it.
Soon after Saddam Hussein's regime fell it became clear that Chalabi lacked public support in Iraq, and anti-American anger grew as Iraq descended into chaos. But the Pentagon planners had made no alternate plan, the report charged.
Bureau Report
"There was no real planning for postwar Iraq," said one former senior official. Most of those interviewed requested anonymity.
Civilian planners at the pentagon's secretive office of special plans hoped to transform Iraq into an ally of Israel, remove a potential threat to the oil trade in the region and encircle Iran with US friends and allies, the report said.
It also quoted officials describing efforts by that office to sideline and disregard other US government departments' planning for a postwar Iraq.
Putting Iraqi exile leader Ahmed Chalabi in power in Baghdad was a key part of this vision, according to the officials.
Undersecretary of Defence for Policy Douglas Feith, the head of the Pentagon planning group, denied the plan to install Chalabi, but Pentagon advisor Richard Perle confirmed it.
Soon after Saddam Hussein's regime fell it became clear that Chalabi lacked public support in Iraq, and anti-American anger grew as Iraq descended into chaos. But the Pentagon planners had made no alternate plan, the report charged.
Bureau Report