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Experts: Insurgency in Iraq could spread I —: w Despite outlook, Iraqi, U.S. officials optimistic Hamza Hendaui THE ASSOCIATED PRESS BAGHDAD, Iraq — With the the 2,000th U.S. military death looming in Iraq, many wonder about the direction of the insurgency that killed most of them. U Experts think the country’s increasingly regional-oriented politics will fuel the insurgency and even spread it further inside Iraq. Others put forward a simple, disquieting scenario: So long as U.S. and other foreign troops remain in Iraq, the insurgency will continue. “It will become more chaotic,” predicted Magnus Ranstorp of the Swedish National Defense College in Stockholm, Sweden. “It is obvious that the United States is in Iraq to stay. If this is the case, > The Associated Press Iraqi firefighters try to extinguish burning vehicles at the site of a suicide attack in Baghdad, Iraq, on Sunday. A suicide car bomb in central Baghdad hit two police vehicles in Al-Tahrir Square, killing two officers and two civilians. the Shiites will likely join the Sunnis in the fight.” The 2,000 mark in U.S. military deaths is approaching at a time when Iraqi and U.S. officials are congratulating themselves that the Oct. 15 constitutional referendum and the start of. Saddam Husseins trial four days later passed without major bloodshed and destruction. They also are upbeat about the growing efficiency and number — 200,000 at present — of Iraq’s security forces, although some U.S. commanders say the Iraqis need 18 months to two years before they can fight the insurgency unaided. Recent operations in western Iraq, especially in towns along the Euphrates River close to the Syrian border, are said to have been effective in disrupting the ' insurgents’ supply lines and reducing the number of car bombs. ' Stepped-up security has forced insurgents in recent weeks to largely abandon using car bombs and resort to indirect fire, such as lobbing mortar shells from afar, Interior Minister Bayan Jabr said. Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said troops captured more than 300 foreign fighters and killed 100 members of al-Qaida in Iraq the past six months. Other successes include the detention of 600 insurgents in the two weeks before the referendum, said Maj. Gen. William G. Webster, commander of U.S. forces in Baghdad. But no official predicts a quick victory. “The insurgents are still there,” Lynch cautioned. “They still want to discredit the Iraqi government, so operations continue.” COLLEGES • COflTinilCD FROfTl I Louisiana State University. In a recent report, FEMA suggested that universities form offices to oversee public safety, environmental health and risk management issues to help prevent possible disasters. The University of Maryland has already taken important steps to making its campus and students safer from natural disasters. The university is one of 10 in the nation considered “storm ready” by the National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The federal “StormReady” program aims to encourage campuses to prepare for weather emergencies. “Safety is a top priority for the campus,” University of Maryland President C.D. Mote said in a statement. “We can’t prevent storms, but we can reduce the chances that people might be injured by them.” The university has established an early warning siren system, an emergency operations center and a 24 hour emergency communications center, and it has asked staff and campus police to take part in “storm spotter” training. % Federal officials have asked residents in New England and the : southeast to track Hurricane Wilma as it progresses up the Atlantic coast. ^ “Preparations should be made now ... we urge the public to take this storm seriously and to listen to state and ' local authorities for instructions,” acting FEMA director R. David Paulison said in a news release. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocknews @gum. sc. edu -a TH#%AMECOCK Online five days a week. Sick. »! |[ pj It i' r.i i) ilUDJ m jumj 11111 Urt jk mm The Turning Pointe COSTUME RENTALS AND SALES 5143 Forest Drive 782.8188