VARIOUS: Various reactions to the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld as US Secretary of Defence

Iraqi people on Thursday (November 9) showed little interest for the news of the stepping down of the US Secretary of Defense, with many saying that there will be no positive change to their war torn country. "I think the US policy is a firm and clear policy in front of the world (even) if its US Secretary of Defense stepped down. I do not think that there will be a change, that kind of change that Iraqis seek in general," said Najim, an Iraqi citizen in Baghdad. Donald Rumsfeld, the controversial face of U.S. war policy, quit on Wednesday (November 8) after Democrats rode Americans' anger over Iraq to victory in Tuesday's (November 7) congressional elections. Just days after declaring his strong support for Rumsfeld, President George W. Bush said he agreed with his top war manager that it was time for a new perspective. Bush said Rumsfeld would be replaced by former CIA Director Robert Gates, a member of the Iraq Study Group, a bipartisan group that is assessing alternative strategies for Iraq. One Iraqi soldier on patrol in Baghdad said, "no change, it is the same. There will be no change, I mean the stepping down of the US Secretary of Defense. There will be no change," Tuesday's elections gave the Democrats control of the U.S. House of Representatives and results on Wednesday saw them move within one seat of victory in the Senate. The slap to Bush's Republican Party was driven largely by voter anger over Iraq, where more than three years of combat have failed to stop violence plaguing much of the country. Americans voted just days after the military saw its highest monthly death toll in almost two years. The total U.S. military death toll since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003 is currently 2,839. Afghanistan's government on Thursday thanked Rumsfeld for his commitment to overthrowing the Taliban. Foreign Ministry spokesman Sultan Ahmad Baheen said he didn't expect his resignation to mark a change in U.S. policy towards Afghanistan. "We are sure that the nomination of the new Defense Secretary in the United States will not affect the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan and we are confident that the government and people of America have a long term commitment to fighting terrorism in Afghanistan, and they will continue that commitment," In Egypt, Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa hoped the Rumsfeld's departure and the change in the U.S. political landscape would bring about a change in policy from the Bush Administration. Bush's often unequivocal support for Israel has been highly unpopular in the Arab world, and Moussa said he hoped the change in Congress would signal a new direction. "We hope the United States will follow a fair policy, a policy which will help to build a just peace between Israel and the Arabs, to end the Arab-Israeli conflict, and not help only one side," said Moussa When the Democratic party was in power under former President Bill Clinton, the United States was active in promoting talks between Israel and its Arab neighbours, but was widely perceived by the Arab states as being biased towards the interests of Israel. In Pakistan scores of Christians, including women and children, took to the streets of Islamabad on Thursday to welcome the victory of the Democratic Party in the US mid-term elections. Carrying banners saying: "Well done U.S. Democrats" and "We, the World Peace Lovers, hope that the success of Democratic Party in U.S elections will bring peace in the world", the demonstrators marched through the streets of the capital. One placard read "No More Rumsfeld. No More War,". "The world is moving towards the third world war. At this point in time we do not need people like Rumsfeld, leaders who lead the world towards destruction. We want peace-loving leaders, not war-mongers," Julius Salik, a former Minorities minister who was leading the rally, told Reuters Television. He said he hoped the success of the Democrats would bring an end to the policies of the Bush administration, and asked the crowd to join him in praying for an end to the turmoil in the world.

ITN Source | November 9, 2006

Tags:. .landscape. .combat. .conflict. .afghanistans. .lovers