U.S. troops still at war after Bush declaration

When President Bush declared on May 1 that major combat operations had ended in Iraq, there was little discussion of what he meant. For all practical purposes, it seemed the war was over.

It is not.

Since the president made his statement to waves of applause from sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, 45 American servicemen have died in Iraq. Commanders say there is much more fighting ahead.

The total number of American deaths in Iraq since the war began March 19 is 183, according to the Pentagon's count. The number stood at 138 on May 1; two weeks ago it was at 171.

The Pentagon has offered no official estimates of total Iraqi combat deaths from the president's declaration until now.

Although large parts of Iraq are relatively peaceful and U.S. military control overall is not in doubt, an amalgam of shadowy resistance forces, including unknown numbers of non-Iraqi fighters, are carrying out almost daily hit-and-run attacks against the American occupation forces.

In response, U.S. troops this week began a combat operation, code-named Peninsula Strike, in an area north of Baghdad along the Tigris River against what Central Command described as "Baath Party loyalists, paramilitary groups and other subversive elements."

Some analysts believe these remnants of Saddam Hussein's government are hoping to make a comeback in chaos by killing enough U.S. troops to exhaust the American public's tolerance for casualties.

Encouraging attacks

Lee Feinstein, a foreign policy and international law expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, said in an interview Friday that Bush needs to make an unequivocal public commitment to completing the stabilization of postwar Iraq. The administration's oft-repeated statement that U.S. forces will remain as long as necessary, "and not one day longer," suggests an impatience to leave that only encourages Iraqi opposition fighters to wait out the Americans, he said.

"It encourages attacks on us," Feinstein said.

John Steinbruner, director of the Center for International Security and Studies at the University of Maryland, said he believes the administration is in "the early stages of trouble" with its Iraq policy because Bush has not clearly explained the long-term goal.

"If you're asking, will there be a sharp and immediate revolt over casualties, I would say no, it will take time to ripen," Steinbruner said in a telephone interview.

No U.S. troops have been killed in Peninsula Strike, although a small number have been wounded, Pentagon officials said.

About 4,000 U.S. troops are involved in the operation, mostly from the Army's 4th Infantry Division, the officials said. They are using armor, artillery, infantry and attack planes.

Friday's battles marked day four of the U.S. sweep to hunt down supporters of Saddam Hussein's fallen regime. About 100 anti-American fighters have been killed in the sweep, the biggest U.S. military operation since Saddam's regime fell.

Staged by the 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions, the fighting follows the U.S. strategy of luring opposition holdouts into the open, where their assault rifles and rocket launchers are no match for American forces equipped with computerized weaponry and heavy armor.

Lt. Gen. David McKiernan, the senior commander of U.S. ground forces in Iraq, said that although Peninsula Strike is an important mission, it is different from what he called the decisive phase of the war -- the major combat operations that toppled Saddam's government in just three weeks of fighting.

In the current combat north of Baghdad, U.S. forces have conducted raids where intelligence indicated there were resistance fighters organizing for attacks on American troops. McKiernan said more than 400 Iraqis were detained and about 50 of them are being held captive.

Besides the Saddam loyalists, there are an unknown number of foreign fighters who have staged attacks on American forces since Baghdad fell in April.