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New US Commander: Stakes in Iraq High, but Situation Not Hopeless
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=162F8CA:A6F02AD83191E160DAC97E25D3DFA1779574F7DCC14957C0 General David
Petraeus officially took command of his new post in ceremony at US
base near Baghdad The new U.S. military commander in Iraq, General
David Petraeus, says the stakes in Iraq are high, but the situation is
not hopeless.







General David Petraeus, second from left, is handed a flag by a staff
member for Gen. George Casey, second from right, as he takes over as
top commander for U.S. troops in Iraq, 10 Feb. 2007General Petraeus
officially took command of his new post in a ceremony Saturday at a
U.S. base, Camp Victory, near Baghdad. He succeeds General George
Casey.

General Petraeus said he thinks prospects for success are good. He
warned failure would - in his words- "doom" Iraq to "continued
violence and civil strife."

In a letter to troops Saturday, the four-star general stressed the
importance of working "shoulder to shoulder with our Iraqi comrades"
to bolster security.

General Petraeus will oversee President Bush's controversial plan to
send an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq.

Meanwhile, in Shi'ite areas of Baghdad Saturday, at least eight
civilians died in two separate attacks by suspected Sunni insurgents.

Police say gunmen attacked a house in the southern Baghdad area of
Musayyib, killing three members of a family and wounding two others.
In the central part of the capital, a car bomb killed at least five
people and wounded 10 others in the neighborhood of Karradah.

U.S. military officials say three American soldiers were killed and
four others wounded Friday in Diyala province, north of Baghdad.

Last month, General Petraeus told the U.S. Senate Armed Services
Committee the security situation in Iraq had deteriorated
significantly in the past year. He said the Bush administration's new
strategy for Iraq will focus on ensuring security for the population
in Baghdad and elsewhere.


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