US troop levels in Iraq unsustainable after mid-2008: Powell

0 Comments | AFP, July, 2007

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Former US secretary of state and top US general Colin Powell said Wednesday that the current level of US troops in Iraq cannot be maintained beyond mid-2008.

Powell, a retired four-star general who was President George W. Bush's top diplomat from 2001 to 2005, and was the military's Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of staff during 1989-1993, also called on Washington to find a way to talk with the powerful Palestinian group Hamas, despite its alleged terror links.

"This is a tremendous burden on our troops and on our families," Powell said of the ongoing troop presence in Iraq, in an interview with National Public Radio.

Speaking after Senate Republicans blocked a vote calling for troop withdrawals to start within 120 days and for a complete...