Iraqi Army Desertions

Buried away toward the bottom of this news article are a few interesting paragraphs about the morale of at least one Iraqi Army battalion:

    Meanwhile, gunmen Friday attacked an Iraqi army checkpoint in the city of Adhaim, in religiously and ethnically mixed Diyala province, killing eight soldiers and wounding seventeen, an Iraqi army officer said on condition he not be identified for fear of reprisal.

    “There were too many to count,” said Akid, a 20-year-old soldier from Diwanayah being treated for gunshot wounds to both thighs. “They tried to kill everybody.”

    Akid, who would only give his first name for fear of reprisal, said his battalion of about 600 men had already suffered over 250 desertions after a Dec. 3 ambush in Adhaim killed 19 Iraqi soldiers.

    “They gave up,” he said. “They said, ‘The hell with this.'”

I wonder if this is one of the Iraqi battalions cited by the Pentagon as being ready to take over from American troops. If so, it may be a very long time before our soldiers can come home.