Plan B: Just how defensible IS the American Green Zone in Iraq?

[bemildred]

Someone just sent me an article from a Canadian news service. What a jolt! "Baghdad's Green Zone -- often referred to as a relatively safe and fortified refuge for Americans, other Westerners, and politicians in Iraq -- appeared to be nothing short of a war zone Thursday. Warning sirens for bombs blared all day as diplomats and U.S. workers donned flak jackets and ducked for cover from mortars and rockets that poured down throughout Baghdad. Those U.S. government workers brave enough to ignore a lockdown order by their government and venture into nearly empty city streets saw a city under siege." Canadian TV News actually reported all this. I swear to God. I am not making this stuff up.

Apparently several different Shi'a groups in Iraq are now at each others' throats and that's what the fighting is about. Nope, the Sunni aren't fighting with the Shi'a any more. Now it's Shi'a against Shi'a, the violence is widespread throughout Baghdad and, apparently, American troops are being caught in the middle.

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"But what about using helicopters to bring in supplies?" you might ask. There would have to be helicopters going in and out of the Green Zone 24/7 in order to keep it supplied. And remember that mortar fire may be going on 24/7 too.

Which brings us around to the most important tactical issue -- evacuation. Does General Petraeus have a game plan for evacuating the entire Green Zone by helicopter? Will choppers be landing on the streets of the Green Zone as well as at LZ Washington if the spit hits the fan? Or can they land C-130s on any of those broad Green Zone avenues and take troops out that way? It would take a hecka lot of C-130s to get everyone out safely in case of a siege.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_jane_sti_080328_plan_b_3a_just_how_def.htm

[MannyGoldstein]

1. It's Like The Fall Of Saigon

In Internet time.

I think that the Bush family and all of the legislators that enabled this damned thing would pick up rifles and join the battle.

[realisticphish]

2. that or Somalia nt

[bluerum]

3. Well. They did it in Berlin after WWII. Berlin airlift. Of course the rest of

Europe was not trying to shoot down the C-47's and C-54's flying in supplies round the clock, and the Russians did not seem to want to risk pissing us off any further.

The Berlin Airlift was one of the most massive efforts of it's time and it would cost a hell of a lot of Wall Street money (read tax dollars) to mount a similar effort for Iraq.

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. It was pretty arrogant of the USA to build this fortress in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.

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Surrounding it with walls, and building stuff bunker-style ain't gonna go unnoticed.

Hell, they can't even walk down the street to buy a pop or smokes.

They trapped themselves.

If they'd been smart, they would have built it smack-dab beside the airport.

As it is now, they have to transport all their supplies from the airport to the "Green Zone".

If that supply line ever gets broken . . .

It'll be the "Brown Zone"

Everything dies.