Washington, Nov 02: US authorities in Iraq are incorporating members of the disbanded Iraqi army into the newly reconstituted Iraqi armed forces, weeding out soldiers still loyal to Saddam Hussein, Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said today. Asked to confirm a New York Times report that US officials are considering recalling entire units of the old army, Rumsfeld said the idea is nothing new.
"It always was considered," Rumsfeld told reporters early today. "We've had folks over there for months and months, from the very beginning in fact, before the end of the war, with plans to re-establish a new Iraqi army.
"That's what's been going on. We've already established one unit and others are underway," he said.
Drawing from the 500,000-strong former army, disbanded by coalition authority chief Paul Bremer in May, is seen as a way to accelerate the process of rebuilding the Iraqi armed forces, The Times noted.
"It's difficult work vetting people, sorting out the good from the bad," Rumsfeld went on. "Our folks have done a good job at it... You're always going to make mistakes."
Bureau Report