Popular Iraqi general reassigned

[unhappycamper]

Iraqi Brig. Gen. Abdul-Jabar Saleh, center, talks with 4th Iraqi Army Division commander, Maj. Gen. Salahdin Mustafa Kamal, left, Tuesday after Saleh was replaced as commander of 1st Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division. Saleh was replaced by Brig. Gen. Mu’ayed Noradin, right.


Popular Iraqi general reassigned
By Drew Brown, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Wednesday, November 28, 2007


TIKRIT, Iraq — One of northern Iraq’s longest-serving army brigade commanders was reassigned Tuesday, prompting concern among U.S. military advisers that progress they’ve made in training Iraqi forces here would suffer.

Iraqi Brig. Gen. Abdul-Jabar Saleh, commander of 1st Brigade, 4th Iraqi Army Division, was replaced by Brig. Gen. Mu’ayed Noradin.

Maj. Gen. Salahdin Mustafa Kamal, 4th Iraqi Army Division commander, lauded Saleh’s achievements, saying that Tikrit and its environs were much safer now than when Saleh took command more than three years ago.

However, he said it was time for new leadership in the 1st Brigade. The typical assignment for that position in the Iraqi army is one or two years.

Saleh had fought his transfer to a division staff job for months, and had previously refused to vacate his post when ordered to do so, according to U.S. officers with the 0411 Military Transition Team, a group of advisers working with 1st Brigade.

However, by Tuesday, when Kamal showed up in person to oversee the transfer of authority, it was clear that Saleh had accepted his reassignment to the staff job.


Rest of article at: http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=50558

[NYVet]

1. Generals are transferred all the time

He did a good job and his decision to take the transfer to a staff position may mean that he feels his work in Tikrit is done and he can leave the AO in the hands of another.