IRAQ: More than one thousand Iraqi soldiers graduate from training
- 00:00:12
- ITN Source
IRAQ: More than one thousand Iraqi soldiers graduate from training
More than one thousand Iraqi soldiers stood proudly at attention on Monday (November 20) at a military base south of the capital Baghdad to receive their graduation confirmation following five weeks of gruelling training. A graduation ceremony was held at the al-Nu'maniya military base, 55 km northwest of Kut city, 170 km (105 miles) south of Baghdad. It was attended by representative of the Iraqi Ministry of Defence and Iraqi and U.S. military commanders. During the ceremony the 1,500 graduate soldiers marched in a parade formation, waving Iraqi flags and chanting for Iraq. Washington says its strategy is to train Iraq's security forces to assume responsibility for the country's 18 provinces and pave the way for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, but says a surge in sectarian violence in recent months has frustrated that plan. The Iraqi security forces comprise 165,000 police and 129,000 soldiers according to figures released by the U.S. military recently, while 85 Iraqi army and police battalions have taken the lead in fighting insurgents across Iraq.
ITN Source | November 21, 2006
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