Reid sends police chief to Basra
Defence secretary John Reid is sending a top policeman, former Northern Ireland policing chief Sir Ronnie Flanagan, to Iraq to review the police force in Basra.
Sir Ronnie is to report next year on how to build a neutral and effective police force in the country.
The move comes amid worries over insurgents in the police force. In September, British soldiers freed two undercover soldiers detained by Iraqi police.
Mr Reid, speaking on the BBC’s The Politics Show, said: “There’s a problem with the police in terms of split loyalties running from sympathy for the local people, right through to infiltration with the militia.
“That’s why we are now redoubling our efforts to make sure that these people are rooted out.”
On the same show, Sir Ronnie, who was chief constable of the police service of Northern Ireland, said that achieving a reliable Iraqi police force had so far been more difficult than building an Iraqi army.
“We are probably a year behind in terms of progress in policing,” he said.
“The more capable the Iraqis become in the army … in policing, then the quicker the handover comes. We are not there indefinitely.”
Sir Ronnie will make several visits to Iraq in order to carry out his assessment.
