, Attacks in Iraq carried out by al-Qaida are “specifically designed to create a civil war,” the top U.S. general said on Nov. 29.
U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, echoed U.S. President George W. Bush in playing down growing signs that Iraq is already engulfed in civil war and instead accused al-Qaida of fomenting sectarian bloodshed.
“The Iraqi government does not call it a civil war,” he told reporters. “Two, the Iraqi government is functioning.
“Three, the Iraqi security forces are responsive to the Iraqi government,” he added. “Four, the level of violence that is being inflicted by al-Qaida and the like is specifically designed to create a civil war.”
Much of the violence raging in Iraq has been Shiite and Sunni Muslims carrying out revenge attacks against each other.
Pace spoke as Bush, under heavy pressure for a change of course in Iraq, arrived for crisis talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Jordan. Their meeting set for Nov. 29 was delayed until Nov. 30.
The impending talks were clouded by a leaked White House memo questioning Maliki
