US Military Needs Search Warrants...Now Iraq's Police Force

In the Status of Forces Agreement I just posted to this blog, there is a section that states American Military forces cannot search a home without a search warrant issued by the Iraqi's, and cannot DETAIN anyone, including terrorists. Lending credence to the SOFA agreement I posted as being an accurate reflection of what George Bush has agreed too, seems that the Washington Times has just reported that US Troops need to have an Iraqi issued search warrant to search a home or business in Iraq beginning next month...in short, welcome to Vietnam II, as America's military has just been reduced to worse than a police force, they have been reduced to the equivalent of Mall Security.

EXCLUSIVE: U.S. to begin using search warrants in Iraq

Status-of-forces agreement might require authorization

Richard Tomkins
Thursday, November 20, 2008

BAGHDAD Some U.S. troops in Iraq could begin applying for warrants before detaining terrorist suspects or searching Iraqi homes as soon as Dec. 1 -- a month before they might become required to do so under a new status-of-forces agreement.

ASSOCIATED PRESS COURT ORDERS: U.S. soldiers search an Iraqi home Thursday. They may first need a warrant signed by an Iraqi judge under a new status-of-forces agreement between Washington and Baghdad, which still requires approval from the Iraqi legislature.

Military sources, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the topic, said at least some units of the 4th Infantry Division in Baghdad would begin obtaining warrants from Iraqi legal authorities next month before making arrests or searching homes for weapons caches and other contraband in noncombat situations.

U.S. military officials would not confirm or deny the report.

According to the sources, discussions have been held between some U.S. military officials and their Iraqi counterparts on procedures the soldiers will have to follow to get the warrants. Thus far, no guidelines have been issued, the sources said.

"I really don't know how it is going to work out," said Maj. Geoff Greene, executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, which operates in east Baghdad. "I don't know how to get them yet," he said of the warrants, adding that he expects to "receive guidance soon."

Iraq Troop Deal Should Not Be Considered Until 111th Congress

Seems a new SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) is circulating around on Capital Hill, and Gates is wanting Congress to pass it. Who cares if months of negotiation have brought forth a contract that Gates (and George W. Bush) can live with? Fact of the matter is, this SOFA should not be looked at, considered and voted upon until the 111th Congress, should not be voted on until the NEW PRESIDENT can put his fingerprints on it. Bush is a Dead Duck president with zero clout, Gates is gone when the new administration comes in, and the new President should not have his hands tied by pushing through a deal in the closing hours of a dismal administration that is filled with graft and corruption.

Status of Forces Agreement Being Circulated in U.S. and Iraq Governments

By KAREN RUSSO, LUIS MARTINEZ, KIRIT RADIA and ALI HUSSIEN
BAGHDAD, Oct. 16, 2008

After months of negotiations, the United States and Iraq have produced a draft agreement outlining how U.S. troops will operate in Iraq, and it is being circulated among the executive branches of both the U.S. and Iraqi governments.

Girls walk past a U.S. soldier on a patrol with the Iraqi police in Baghdad's Ameen district October 14, 2008.

(Thaier al-Sudani/Reuters)

Negotiations on the Status of Forces Agreement, or SOFA, had been deadlocked for months over disagreements about a timeline for U.S. troop withdrawal and over whether U.S. troops would be subject to Iraqi laws if they commit crimes.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is "comfortable" with the draft agreement, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said, indicating the key hurdle of legal immunity for U.S. troops in Iraq had been overcome -- though he did not reveal details.

However, a senior U.S. official told ABC News the deal would allow for American troops to be tried in Iraqi courts for crimes committed off-base and when not on missions.

The Iraqi government has pressed for lifting the blanket immunity from prosecution in Iraqi courts that U.S. forces currently have in Iraq, should they be involved in crimes. Currently, any offenses are dealt with through the military judicial system.