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Iraqi army recruits go to training

A group of Iraqi men stand in front of the local Khalidiya police station, some 90km north of Baghdad, on Monday. A crowd of Iraqi men attacked and burned the police station witness said. PHOTO: REUTERS

Four hundred recruits for the new Iraqi army headed north to Kirkuk under heavy US military guard for two months of basic training. Also, the US-appointed Governing Council said that it needs civil servants to do its work effectively.

The volunteer recruits are part of the first batch of more than 12,000 Iraqis scheduled to be ready for military service by year's end. The US military expects to have 40,000 Iraqis trained for the new army by the end of next year.

The new recruits were transported in convoys under heavy protection Monday, for fear of attacks by resistance fighters who consider the volunteers US collaborators. The guerrilla fighters have waged near-daily attacks on US-led forces.

West of Baghdad, witnesses in Khaldiya reported an ambush on an US military convoy but US military officials said there were no US casualties.

The Iraqi army recruits -- who are between the ages of 18 and 40 and who must not have held a rank of colonel or higher in Saddam Hussein's military -- train for two months and must serve at least 26 months after that. They will be paid US$60 monthly during training, and up to US$120 a month during service depending on their rank, US officials said.

Meanwhile, a member of the Governing Council said Monday that he expected the council to have a 24-member Cabinet in place within a week.

Adnan Pachachi, one of nine rotating presidents on the council, said the ministers would mostly be "experienced technocrats," suggesting that some of the acting ministers would be confirmed in their posts.

"We have all the politicians we need in the Governing Council," he said, "so we want technocrats with experience who can show us the way and give us a clear picture of what the priorities are for Iraq."

US forces continued to search for Saddam, conducting a series of covert operations in the past two weeks.
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