The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
•
Pre-conflict
shortages of medical supplies had been aggravated by
looting.
NGOs had
restored stocks to most major hospitals, but there remained
the
problem of
persuading health professionals to return to their
posts.
701.
Separate
assessments of the five provinces provided more detail, but all
with the
caveat that
information on the region remained limited. Information on Muthanna
and
Wasit
provinces was particularly sparse.
702.
No assessment
was made of the comparative advantage of including
particular
provinces
in the UK AOR.
703.
In a statement
to Parliament on 30 April, Mr Hoon announced
that:
“Decisive
combat operations in Iraq are now complete, and Coalition Forces
are
increasingly
focusing upon stabilisation tasks. It will therefore be possible to
make
further
force level adjustments over the coming weeks while continuing to
meet our
responsibilities
to the Iraqi people.” 396
704.
In addition to
the substantial withdrawal of Royal Navy and RAF personnel
and
many of the
Army war-fighting units, Mr Hoon explained that he had
extended the tour
of one unit
to enable it “to continue in their key role of ensuring security in
the region of
Zubayr”. He
concluded that:
“While
details continue to be clarified, we envisage that by mid-May
25,000–30,000
UK Service
personnel will remain deployed in the Gulf region, continuing to
fulfil our
responsibilities
towards the Iraqi people. The planned replacement of forces is
clear
evidence of
our commitment to them.
“Our aim is
to leave an Iraq that is confident, secure and fully integrated
with the
international
community. The planning process to establish the precise level of
the
continuing
UK presence needed to achieve this aim is a dynamic one, and is
kept
under
review. We will also need to take account of the contributions of
Coalition
partners.
We will continue to withdraw assets and personnel from the
region
where possible,
but we will maintain an appropriate military presence for as
long
as necessary.”
705.
On 1 May,
President Bush declared major combat operations in Iraq to have
ended
(see
Section 9.1).
706.
Cabinet was
told on 1 May that British troops had done an excellent job in
restoring
security in
the South of Iraq. The problem was now one of criminality which did
not
require UK
troops on the streets but police, and a judicial process.
Persisting in patrolling
with
foreign troops “was not a good idea”.397
396
House of
Commons, Official
Report, 30 April
2003, columns 15-16WS.
397
Cabinet
Conclusions, 1 May 2003.
124