Jolie Sees Benefit in US Surge in Iraq
NEW YORK (AP) â?? Actress and humanitarian activist Angelina Jolie said Thursday that the reinforcement of U.S. troops in Iraq has created an opportunity for humanitarian programs to boost assistance for Iraqi refugees.
In an op-ed piece published by the Washington Post, titled "A Reason to Stay in Iraq," Jolie details the plight of refugees and says their conditions have not improved since she visited the country last August to urge governments to provide more support.
Jolie, who has been a U.N. goodwill ambassador since 2001, was in Baghdad earlier this month to again highlight the refugee problem. She talked with Gen. David Petraeus, the American military commander in Iraq, and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, the U.S. Embassy said.
Petraeus "told me he would support new efforts to address the humanitarian crisis" as much as possible, "which leaves me hopeful that more progress can be made," the actress wrote.
She said she stressed to Iraqi officials there must be a coherent plan for helping some 2 million Iraqis who are taking advantage of the downturn in violence to begin trickling back to abandoned homes from havens elsewhere in the country. A similar number fled Iraq to escape the bloodshed.
"It will be quite a while before Iraq is ready to absorb more than 4 million refugees and displaced people," Jolie wrote. "But it is not too early to start working on solutions."
The actress, who works on behalf of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, urged America's presidential candidates and congressional leaders to step up financing for aid to displaced Iraqis. UNHCR has asked for $261 million this year â?? "less than the U.S. spends each day to fight the war in Iraq," she wrote.
Addressing the question of whether the "troop surge" has worked, Jolie said that "I can only state what I witnessed."
"When I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq," she wrote. "They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible."
The Associated Press: Jolie Sees Benefit in US Surge in Iraq
Hell yeah....finally one of the Hollywood bleeding hearts comes out with the truth. Would these eyes lie? Looks like an honest lady to me!:D
Have a good one!:jointsmile:
Jolie Sees Benefit in US Surge in Iraq
Well it's good to know that the millions we're pouring into Iraq every day is doing us some good...oh wait, it isn't...Too bad we don't use that money to put high school graduates through college for free...I think securing the future of our country is much more vital than securing the future of their holy war to continue.
"But the rally in Killeen, though much smaller, may have been just as significant. Killeen is near Fort Hood, and among the 300 people who attended were many active-duty soldiers (though not in uniform) and their families. Whether it was the young man going back to Iraq for his fourth tour, or the sister of a soldier just killed there, they all wanted change in our foreign policy. Most heartbreaking was the young mother who asked for a signed copy of the Constitution for her son, "who will never know his dad." He too was just killed in Iraq.
How can we ask one young American to die for a neocon empire? The soldiers and their families agree with us, which is why our campaign gets more financial support from active-duty and retired military than all the rest combined. They want to defend America, not be part of some globalist scheme to take away our country's independence. And by the way, at both rallies, nobody was for the monstrous Trans-Texas Corridor or the North American Union."
Jolie Sees Benefit in US Surge in Iraq
We are getting nothing out of this war.
And they are acting like something is gonna great is gonna be done for the refugees. But just watch, in a couple of years they are gonna be in the same place just like all the other refugees in the world.
Jolie Sees Benefit in US Surge in Iraq
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Too bad we don't use that money to put high school graduates through college for free...I think securing the future of our country is much more vital than securing the future of their holy war to continue.
Hey guess what? securing the future means fighting terrorism, what good is a college education in a world controlled by terror? where fear dictates your actions????? and a "HOLY WAR" come on man really???? It may be a holy war to the brainwashed terrorists but if you're viewing this as Christianity vs. Islam you are mistaken in my opinion. it is quite simply the civilized world vs. extremists......:stoned:
