Right now, actively involved in operations in Tal Afar is the Third Iraqi Army Division, … We now have sufficient assets available, between the coalition forces and Iraqi security forces, to leave behind a robust...

Last year, as we worked through the problem set, that (militias) wasn’t a problem set we focused on.

It’s exciting to me that we’ve reached the point where that much of Iraq is controlled by the people of Iraq.

We’re not seeing civil war ignited in Iraq. We’re seeing a competent, capable Iraqi government using their security forces to calm the storm.

The rats know we are closing in on them,

It’s hard sometimes to sort out who’s killing who. But there’s no doubt there’s a significant Shiite impact on all this.

The terrorists had seen it coming (and prepared) tunnel complexes to be used as escape routes,

This was part of our normal procedures and not as a result of demands from terrorists or criminals. We do not negotiate with terrorists or criminals.

Those pictures were pictures of criminal acts that took place many years ago, rogue soldiers doing activity that wasn’t supported by their chain of command.

The difference is that the Iraqi police mechanized brigade actively patrols Route Irish, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, … It transformed it from the highway of death to one of the most...

What we’ve got to do is look at the individual that was indeed detained and what was he doing, regardless of what his profession is, … That’s a ‘no’.

The absence of an effective national unity government is creating the conditions for the insurgency to do what it wants to do.

There seems to be this basic idea that we attack a city, the insurgents run away and go somewhere else, and I’ve got to tell you, that’s not happening,

It is imperative, in our perspective, that we drive a wedge between the insurgents and the Sunni population of Iraq . And having them actively involved in the political process is a way to drive...

Hopefully, that’s in the near future.

What we are seeing him do now is shift his target from the coalition forces to Iraqi civilians and Iraqi security forces. The enemy is trying to stop the formation of this national unity government;...

They were bound, they were together, there were no kidnappers in the area.

The insurgents are still there, … They still want to derail the democratic process. They still want to discredit the Iraqi government, so operations continue.

have the ability to pick the time and place of their choosing … They have used swarm tactics and conducted a complex attack against civilians and Iraqi police officers.

every planned operation, we take cultural sensitivity and things like holidays into consideration. For the momentum of the operations to continue, the decision was made to conduct the operation this morning, fully conscious of the...

The terrorists and foreign fighters that he recruits, trains and equips carry out more than 90 percent of the insidious suicide attacks against the men, women and children of Iraq — attacks that have killed...

forward at a high rate of speed.

He was in a situation where we believed he was conducting suspicious activities. His response to the initial investigation was suspicious in itself. He was detained … but he was released three days later,

We are seeing a confident Iraqi government using capable security forces to calm the storm.

We have indeed seen a reduction in the number of suicide attacks in Baghdad,

We’ve got great intelligence which tells us where he’s moving to and where he’s trying to establish safe havens, … We’re using all assets under our control in conjunction with the Iraqi security forces to...

Again, thats blown out of proportion. Those young men and women were expressing their opinion. If you come over and talk to the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines we have on the ground her in...

There are indeed areas of Iraq that are relatively safe and secure, and the people in those provinces are working their way toward to a peaceful and democratic society,

The policy doesn’t need to change. The policy that’s in effect is the one that will stay in effect.

So what I’m trying to show you is … there is indeed areas of Iraq that are relatively safe and secure, and those people in those provinces are working their way towards a peaceful society...

The government of Iraq has decided that they won’t accept militias on the street. The government of Iraq has decided that the Mahdi militia is out there, and shouldn’t be out there.

What our soldiers saw as a result of being on the scene was a car coming forward at a high rate of speed, … That particular car looked like cars that we have seen in...

Again, that ‘ s blown out of proportion. Those young men and women were expressing their opinion. If you come over and talk to the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines we have on the ground...

What was he doing that caused us to believe he was involved in suspicious activities? And then we will continue to work through our process to determine whether he should remain in detention, be released...

You will see, over the next several weeks — we’re not specifying any time — specific military operations to target the insurgency in Tal Afar,

That’s what happened in Baghdad today and that’s what happened in Amman yesterday.

Our soldiers on the scene use an established rule of engagement … In this case, our soldiers took the appropriate action,

What we’re seeing across Iraq is that the police forces are indeed gaining capability and gaining public confidence. They continue to grow in not just quantity, but in quality and capability.

[The typical insurgent] doesn’t have the capability or the courage to take on coalition forces or Iraqi security forces in direct combat, … So in the wee hours of darkness, his people move out and...

approached at a high rate of speed and then conducted activity that in itself was suspicious. There were individuals hanging outside with what looked to be a weapon. It stopped and immediately put itself in...

We’re studying very hard where this technology is coming from and what we can do to combat that technology,

In preparation for potential operations, we’re working to evacuate civilians and non-combatants from Tal Afar,

We will continue this mission for as long as it takes… and leave a sizable and credible force to deter the terrorists,

In law enforcement, there’s a time when you have to disassociate yourself from tragedy because if you can’t, it’ll destroy you, … There’s a point in an investigation where you’re still working on it, but...

It happened again today and it can happen again tomorrow, … We are convinced that we are going to fight our way to the elections.

If you think like the enemy, he said: Where is the center of gravity for the people of Iraq? Where do I focus my effort? Where are my attacks going to have the most significant...

What our soldiers on the scene saw was a car coming forward at a highway speed … (It) looked like cars that we have seen in the past used in suicide bombs, (and) with two...

He still has the capability of recruiting suicide bombers, training them, and giving them munitions,

These spikes of violence are predictable around certain critical events that highlight the progress of democracy, … Remember, democracy equals failure for the insurgency. So there has to be heightened awareness now as we work...

We have reason to believe and evidence to support that the terrorists and foreign fighters are, indeed, using kidnapping as a way to finance their operations.