Petraeus: Iran Trying to Bolster Influence in Iraq

By William Branigin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 12, 2007; 1:10 PM

Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, accused Iran today of seeking to "create a Hezbollah-like force" in Iraq to exert Tehran's influence there, but denied that he was preparing the ground for a U.S. attack on Iran.

In a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington after two days of testimony on Capitol Hill, Petraeus and Ryan C. Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, defended their assessments of incremental progress in Iraq and again warned that the way forward will be difficult.

"It will be a long, hard grind," Crocker said. "Right now, I think that grind is making progress."

Asked whether his testimony about Iran could be viewed as part of a campaign to build toward an attack, Petraeus said: "I'm not blaming Iran for all that's gone wrong in Iraq." But he said Iran has contributed to sophisticated attacks in Iraq that otherwise would not be possible, including strikes with armor-piercing "explosively formed projectiles" and 240mm rockets.

"The evidence is very, very clear," Petraeus said. He cited documents discovered during the capture in March of Qais Khazali, a Shiite Muslim militant with ties to the Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, and the arrest of a deputy commander of Hezbollah, the militant Lebanese Shiite group supported by Iran. Petraeus said the evidence links Iran to an attack in Karbala in January that resulted in the deaths of five U.S. soldiers.

Under interrogation, Khazali was asked if he could have carried out that attack without Iranian support, Petraeus said in the news conference. "He literally throws up his hands and laughs and says, 'Of course not,' " the general said.

Khazali and other captives have told U.S. investigators about funding, training, weapons and ammunition they had received from Iran, he said.

A videotape of the Khazali interrogation was shown to Iraqi leaders, "several of whom then went to Iran and made their case, quite forcefully, about their concern of Iranian involvement," Petraeus said.

In response to another question, Petraeus said he and Crocker agree that "you can't win in Iraq . . . just in Iraq." Rather, success requires "greater involvement with respect to some of the neighboring countries, some of the source countries for foreign fighters," he said. "And it certainly involves Iran."

He said Iraqi leaders "have developed much greater concern about Iran's activities, about the activities of the Quds Force with respect to the militia extremists that, in many respects, appear to be trying to create a Hezbollah-like force that they could use to gain influence in Iraq."

Petraeus said that he has the authority he needs to conduct operations inside Iraq and that his concern about Iran "doesn't mean that it's something for which I should have the authority to pursue, any more than we should have that with respect to Syria or elsewhere."

In written testimony submitted to Congress, Petraeus said U.S. forces had captured "the deputy commander of Lebanese Hezbollah Department 2800, the organization created to support the training, arming, funding, and, in some cases, direction of the militia extremists by the Iranian Republican Guard Corps' Quds Force." He also cited the recent discovery of Iranian-backed forces called the "Special Groups" in Iraq.

"These elements have assassinated and kidnapped Iraqi governmental leaders, killed and wounded our soldiers with advanced explosive devices provided by Iran, and indiscriminately rocketed civilians in the International Zone and elsewhere," Petraeus testified.

"It is increasingly apparent to both Coalition and Iraqi leaders that Iran, through the use of the Quds Force, seeks to turn the Iraqi Special Groups into a Hezbollah-like force to serve its interests and fight a proxy war against the Iraqi state and coalition forces in Iraq."

In a separate development, U.S. officials said Washington would press for new, tougher U.N. sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program when diplomats from six nations meet next week. The gathering of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, plus Germany, is set for Sept. 21 in Washington. Two participants -- Russia and China -- have been reluctant to go along with tougher sanctions than those adopted in two Security Council resolutions, and contentious negotiations are expected.

During today's news conference, Petraeus said al-Qaeda's affiliate in Iraq has been driven from some former strongholds but continues to pose a major threat.

"We believe that al-Qaeda-Iraq is off balance," he said, although it "certainly remains very dangerous." He said he calls the group "the wolf closest to the sled" because it "has carried out the most horrific attacks in Iraq," notably those that have sparked the greatest "ethno-sectarian violence."

The general said al-Qaeda in Iraq now is "much more on the run than they have been at any time that I can recall since they really established themselves in Iraq," having been largely driven out of Anbar province and Baqubah. He indicated that the group still operates in Diyala province and several Baghdad neighborhoods and is trying to open "new fronts" in northern Iraq.

Asked if he expects "tens of thousands" of U.S. forces to remain in Iraq for at least the next five years, Petraeus said, "I wouldn't hazard a guess on that. It's very, very difficult to project out much farther beyond the horizon at this point in time, even just to mid-July of next year."

According to recommendations Petraeus made public Monday, that is when about 30,000 troops should be withdrawn, bringing the U.S. military presence down to about 130,000 -- the level before a "surge" of reinforcements ordered earlier this year by President Bush.

Crocker said the two days of congressional testimony showed that there are "deep divisions" and "a lot of frustration" among lawmakers--feelings he said are shared by U.S. officials serving in Iraq. But he said he came away "somewhat encouraged" that amid the frustration, lawmakers showed "willingness to listen to our explanations" and asked a number of "thoughtful and probing questions."

As long as Iraq is moving on an "upward" trajectory, Crocker said, "we need to demonstrate some strategic patience, some resolve and commitment, because this will be a long process. There are no shortcuts. There is no switch to flip."