They're Deserting. Can You BlameThem?

How can Iraq take care of things when they have no soldiers?

Erratic pay, inadequate food and poor living conditions are driving several hundred Iraqi soldiers out of the army every month.

Lt. Moktat Uosef is a company commander in the 4th Brigade of the 7th Iraqi Army Division. U.S. Marines working with the brigade told Stars and Stripes, the U.S. armed forces newspaper, that its strength dropped from 2,200 soldiers in December to 1,400 in May.

Many of my soldiers have not gotten paid in six months, Uosef said. Sometimes, they don't eat for two or three days at a time. I tell my commander, but what else am I supposed to do?

Desertions are a major problem in Anbar Province, the major stronghold of the insurgency. But officials say logistical problems are hurting morale far more than danger is.

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