Fired Air Force Gen. Dugan Says Ground War to Start Within Days
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WASHINGTON — Retired Air Force Gen. Michael Dugan, fired last fall for revealing too much to reporters about allied military strategy in the Persian Gulf, says an allied ground offensive is only days away.
The former Air Force chief of staff, fired last September by Defense Secretary Dick Cheney, said Tuesday that the ground war “is within days, not weeks.”
A ground war “is at hand,” the former four-star general said while roaming the Pentagon corridors as military officials conducted their daily briefing for reporters. “We’re at the point where a combination of threats--air, sea and land--would be clearly more than Iraq could sustain.”
Now a military analyst for network television, Dugan’s statements contradicted indications from the Bush Administration that the massive air initiative will continue for a while longer.
Dugan said the allied forces have already achieved necessary measures to launch a ground assault.
Dugan said military officials are hoping to send mixed messages to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein about their intentions or plans.
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