Rumsfeld asks general overseeing Iraq war to stay

By Will Dunham
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Army Gen. John Abizaid, who oversees U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan as head of Central Command, has agreed to keep the job at least another year at the request of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, defense officials said on Tuesday.

Abizaid, 54, is responsible for about 250,000 troops in the 25-nation Central Command region stretching from the Horn of Africa to Central Asia, spanning much of the Middle East.

Since he succeeded Army Gen. Tommy Franks in July 2003, U.S. troops have fought a tenacious insurgency in Iraq and sought to stabilize a shaky Afghanistan.

The decision to stick with Abizaid comes at a crucial period in Iraq, three years after the U.S.-led invasion. The bombing of an important Shi’ite Muslim mosque last month triggered a surge in sectarian fighting and raised fears of an all-out civil war in a country deeply divided among its Shi’ite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish populations.

Two defense officials, who asked not to be named because Abizaid’s extension has not been formally announced, confirmed Rumsfeld’s request and Abizaid’s acceptance.

A commander typically stays in the top Central Command job for three years, meaning Abizaid was due to leave this summer. He will become the first commander to stay longer than that since the post was created in 1983.

The decision means Rumsfeld is keeping in place his top two generals in the Iraq war. He has also extended Army Gen. George Casey’s service as top commander on the ground in Iraq.

Casey had been expected to return home this summer, but Pentagon officials said he would now remain in Iraq for the "foreseeable future."

A LEBANESE-AMERICAN

Abizaid, a Lebanese-American from California who is a fluent Arabic speaker, earned a master’s degree in Middle East studies from Harvard University and studied at the University of Jordan in Amman.

He succeeded Franks just four months after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq after serving as his deputy. Franks, now retired, was a gruff Texan known more for bluntness and profanity than an academic’s understanding of the region
Iraq and Afghanistan achieved political milestones and U.S. forces captured Iraqi President Saddam Hussein during Abizaid’s command. But Iraq remains mired in violence and Afghanistan has become the largest heroin-producing and trafficking country.

American operations in both countries were also marred by revelations of detainee abuses, while al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and other high-profile fugitives remain at large.

The United States currently has about 133,000 troops in Iraq and about 22,000 in Afghanistan.

Abizaid told reporters last week that "I don’t believe that we are close to civil war" in Iraq.

"I believe a civil war is possible if a long series of events or a bad series of events takes place," he said. "I think we’re to a point where the government is starting to come to grips with what it needs to do to build a government of national unity." he said.

Abizaid has emphasized the need for Iraqi leaders to form a "legitimate government" following elections on December 15.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/21/AR2006032101119.html