Combatus interruptus: the Iraq withdrawal that won't be a withdrawal

... because we'll still have 50,000 troops on the ground engaging in combat operations:

Just one day after reports came out regarding the Obama Administration’s 19 month withdrawal plan from Iraq, the Pentagon was detailing the enormous number of troops that would remain on the ground after Obama ostensibly fulfills his promise to remove all combat troops, and all the combat they’ll be engaging in.

After the “pullout,” as many as 50,000 troops will remain on the ground, and despite being touted as a withdrawal of combat troops, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell conceded that some would continue to “conduct combat operations,” and Iraq would still be considered a war zone. The rest would be what he described as “enablers.”

For perspective, 50,000 troops would be more than we're going to have fighting in Afghanistan even after the surge....

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