Pat Dollard

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Sounds like they were relying on sources as good as those for the pathetic and self-destructive John McCain smear.

Iraq’s equivalent of the AP, Voices of Iraq:

Baghdad, Apr 18, (VOI) – An Iraqi security official on Friday dismissed a report by the New York Times newspaper on the withdrawal of an Iraqi army unit from its post in Sadr City, eastern Baghdad.

“The New York Times report on the withdrawal of an Iraqi army unit from its post in Sadr City is groundless. No desertions in Sadr City were reported save a case of three soldiers during a combat mission,” Maj. General Qassem Atta, the spokesman for the Fardh al-Qanoon (law imposing) security plan, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).

A New York Times report had read that an Iraqi military unit of 50 soldiers left its post in Sadr City, adding that the efforts of Cap. Logan Faith, the commander of the 25th Infantry Regiment in the U.S. army, did not succeed to dissuade the Iraqi unit commander from his decision to give up fighting although that unity did not lose any of its soldiers during combat operations.

The U.S. paper allegedly quoted the Iraqi officer as saying that he has given orders to his unit to stop operations due to lack of reinforcements, zero communication with the U.S. forces and poor armament compared to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army militiamen.