‘They can have it’ U.S. pulls back from turbulent Iraq province
After more than a year of fighting, U.S. troops have stopped patrolling large swaths of Iraq’s restive Anbar province, according to the top American military intelligence officer in the area.
Most U.S. Army officers interviewed this week said the patrols in and around the province’s capital, Ramadi – home to many Iraqi military and intelligence officers under Saddam Hussein – have stopped largely because the soldiers and commanders there were tired of being shot at by insurgents who’ve refused to back down under heavy American military pressure.
Translation: The US gave up and has lost a key province.