London: The British Army has been told to prepare for an occupation of Iraq lasting
up to as many as three years in the event of war, according to Defence Ministry
sources.
The UK troops being sent to Kuwait would probably be used for peacekeeping
and "rearguard" duties rather than frontline combat, the sources said.
What happens in Iraq after a war will be harder than the conflict itself, and the
country would be divided into sectors, with the UK responsible for one of them,
the 'BBC' reported on February 4 quoting the sources.
A senior military figure has confirmed that the Army has been told to prepare for
a "very long presence indeed in Iraq," the report said.
The war itself is expected to be short, with Saddam Hussein's subordinates refusing
to obey orders once the invasion begins, the report said.
Officially, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) would only say that contingency planning
was going on and it would be premature to speculate about it.
Separately, some units in the 7 Armoured Brigade – the main British Army formation
going to the Gulf – said they have been asked to protect the US forces' rear during
any invasion and to deal with war prisoners.
They could spend around eight months in peacekeeping duties, to be replaced by other
British troops, while the Army's other units would be closer to the frontline.
About 31,000 UK troops have already been sent off to the Gulf and around 4,000
marines are being sent.
PTI
