But if you read the story you will note that these three were talking on a guarantee of anonymity.
And these are three of our guys...described as "senior members of the coalition military and civilian authorities in Iraq.
Which begs the question...why the need for anonymity?
“We have the forces present in this country to accomplish our mission,” he said.
But he admitted that more weapons and combatants from other countries opposed to American policies may be entering the country, just as American troops confront those already here.
“We’re trying to re-establish Iraqi control of the borders,” he said. “We’ve got hundreds or thousands [of miles] of desert territory that we can’t control. We’re not going to defeat them by trying to control the borders. That’s an impossible task.”
The two senior members of the military’s civilian counterpart didn’t use “impossible” while describing the country’s current power situation, but they weren’t painting a rosy picture, either.
One of them detailed the sources of electricity in Iraq, stating the country generated about 56 percent through thermal plants. Add another 23 percent from the burning of natural gas and about 80 percent comes from the conversion of petroleum. The rest comes from water projects.
The production was virtually at zero when coalition forces took control of the country but has increased currently to about 3,100 megawatts a day. But that’s not close to meeting the country’s needs.
One megawatt, the official said, is enough to light about 1,000 homes.
He said recent attacks on the power grid have disrupted the flow of electricity into Baghdad. He also inferred that residents in the country’s largest city notice the electricity shortage more than others because they had generally received more power than other areas during Saddam’s regime.
“I think it’s fair to say that about 80 percent of the population of Iraq has more power now than they did during the regime,” the official said.
Read it all here.
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