Iraq could become a "terrorist Disneyland" if Coalition forces withdraw

LONDON (Reuters) - A U.S. troop pullout from Iraq would leave the country as a potent launchpad for international terrorism and Washington would be forced to go back in within a couple of years, a leading al Qaeda expert said on Tuesday.

Rohan Gunaratna told a security conference at Lloyd's of London insurance market that Iraq, like Afghanistan in the 1990s, would become a "terrorist Disneyland" where al Qaeda could build up its strength unchallenged.

If U.S., British and other coalition troops withdrew from Iraq in the next year, he said, "certainly the scale of attacks that would be mounted inside Iraq, and using Iraq as a launching pad to strike other Western countries -- countries in Europe, North America - would become such that after two or three years, the U.S. forces will have to go back to Iraq".

Source: The Scotsman

What does everyone think? If US, British and other troops left Iraq would it transpire that we had to return there a year or two later, or would Iraq manage to sort itself out on its own?

Personally, I think it's possible but difficult to judge. It could turn into Afghanistan under the Taliban... is it worth withdrawing and taking that risk as long as our troops are safe?

Iraq is a mess, but it isn't a catastrophe until we pull out. A civil war is almost certain, and you have outside influences openly funding terrorist groups. Iran is funding both sunni and shiite organizations. Saudi Arabia has said that if the US leaves they will start funding the sunnis in Iraq. If the US leaves the Kurds will move for independence, that is almost 100% certain. This will bring Turkey into the fray, for they will not stand for an independent Kurdistan. I have heard estimates that a total bloodbath could ensue following a coalition departure, millions dead potentially. Lawless urban sprawl in the heart of muslim country is not only a disneyland for terrorists, its heaven for them.

Like its not now? Come on now it already is a catastrophe and a civil war, of our making and we are stuck right in the middle which I hate to say it, serves us right for thinking we could re-make another country in our own image... the hubris.. the arrogance.

Originally posted by Ste2652
What does everyone think? If US, British and other troops left Iraq would it transpire that we had to return there a year or two later, or would Iraq manage to sort itself out on its own?

Personally, I think it's possible but difficult to judge. It could turn into Afghanistan under the Taliban... is it worth withdrawing and taking that risk as long as our troops are safe?

A failed state is a dream come true for Al Qaeda and its allies, where no govt is in control of its own territory nor do they have the resources and manpower to enforce its own laws and prevent any terrorist organization to take hold, train, and build its forces. Not to mention under the Taliban rule, Al Qaeda had a free hand in the country since Mullah Omar and Osama Bin Laden are best buddies. Remember that Osama married one of Omar's daughters.

So what! let it become terroristville. No more foreigners allowed in the West! Period! End of disscusion! Get off your politically correct soap box and lock out the crazies and their freinds & families & relatives. You got a fundamentalist in your family, city, province, country? Well you can't come to the West until you get rid of the bombers yourself. No more foreign aid either. Time for the west to become isolationists, we will be off this planet before anyone else!

Isolationism is a failed policy. Prudent non-interventionism works much better.

Terrorist Disneyland huh?

Mister Allah's Wild Ride......

Space Jihad.....

Big IED Mountain.....

It's a Muslim World......

.......please stop me........

Peace

It really come down to this:

Are you willing to stake thousands, hundreds of thousands, even a million lives by pulling out of Iraq from a large scale civil war garenteed to insue, but save the American troops?

Or stay in Iraq and be forced to sacrifice some of our brave troops, but knowing that you will be saving alot more for each American soldier who dies.

How many Iraqi civilians are worth one American troop?

At this point it sort of feels like a humanitairan job in Iraq...

I don't have the answers, just something to ponder...

-Reform America

question: Why can't we have it both ways?

my suggestion: assemble a multinational peacekeeping/policing force for iraq and pull out the US military. sure, the US would have to devote a fairly large portion of the funding (we must pay for the mess we made) and a certain portion of the soldiers.

we need a REAL coalition of the willing for once.

Im just glad Saddam was worth all this mess.
Id hate to think we caused all this over money and revenge...

That would just be a major.. MAJOR kick in the teeth for any 'pro-bush' and 'pro-iraq' people.


Terrorist Haven? It is already.
And if you cant see that, then your watching fox and cnn a tad to much.

Iraq, and its cities are just too big, with too many people to be able to control.

Grab google earth, and go look at a city.
Then imagine 2 dozen us troops, a tank and a Stryker patrolling a street in that googlemap view...

then look at all those buildings clumped together... how in the world can we control what goes on in that building when we are patrolling the streets? there could be 100's of insurgents planning what ever in that building.

My point is, there's just too many places, and too many people that are against occupation ( and rightly so ) for us to ever be able to control this country for a few hundered thousand troops.

Pull out, or dont pull out.. Iraq is going to end up exactly the same as it was.

People will WISH We had not of taken saddam out in the end...

I still say, as Madness said..

Spend hundereds of billions on a multi-national peace/salvation force made up from various arab nations...
pull every westerner out and contribue what ever part of your economy is nessecary to rebuild Iraq so that the younger generation grows up in a satisfactory area, and not a war torn, militia run area.

Err, it's already a "terrorist Disneyland"... and we made it that way.

How much worse can it really get?

Originally posted by Dr Love
Terrorist Disneyland huh?

Mister Allah's Wild Ride......

Space Jihad.....

If we could just find a way to lock them all up in the Enchanted Tiki Room they'll probably just all kill themselves.