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| Version 5 | Version 6 |
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| US surge plan in Iraq 'working' | US surge plan in Iraq 'working' |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| The military objectives of the US troop surge in Iraq "are largely being met", the top US military commander in Iraq, Gen David Petraeus, has said. | The military objectives of the US troop surge in Iraq "are largely being met", the top US military commander in Iraq, Gen David Petraeus, has said. |
| Gen Petraeus' comments came as he and Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker began testifying before Congress. | Gen Petraeus' comments came as he and Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker began testifying before Congress. |
| The testimony has been billed as "make or break" for President George W Bush's resolve to stay the course in Iraq. | The testimony has been billed as "make or break" for President George W Bush's resolve to stay the course in Iraq. |
| A record 168,000 US troops are now in Iraq after the 30,000 arrived in the surge between February and June. | A record 168,000 US troops are now in Iraq after the 30,000 arrived in the surge between February and June. |
| Gen Petraeus also told Congress that troops numbers could be reduced to pre-surge level by next summer without jeopardising the security situation in Iraq. | |
| He said the number of what he described as security incidents had declined significantly since the surge began. | |
| He said the number of civilian deaths had also gone down. | |
| But he acknowledged that improvements in security had been "uneven". | |
| "While noting that the situation in Iraq remains complex, difficult and sometimes downright frustrating, I also believe that it is possible to achieve our objectives in Iraq over time, although doing so will be neither quick, nor easy," he said. | |
| Gen Petraeus said his testimony had not been cleared by the Pentagon or the White House before he gave it, and that he had written it himself. | |
| His testimony was slightly delayed after a microphone did not work. Several hecklers were also removed from the hearing. |