Interesting follow up in the light of my recent post.
“Three British soldiers were killed, one of them in a two-and-a-half-hour battle in downtown Basra that resembled the movie “Black Hawk Down,” Wilde said.
“That made it just absolutely clear that the middle of the city was under Sadr militia control,” Wilde said.
British troops, however, held back, choosing to nibble at the edges of militant strongholds rather than risk massive civilian casualties in an all-out assault.
“It was very hard to take for the blokes,” Wilde said. “They’d lost some mates and were very ready to roll the place up.”
Analysis: this may be another explanation for Jackson’s trip to Iraq recently, as well as trying to relieve discontent over the decision that at least one soldier will be prosecuted by the civilian authorities over a shooting in Basra.