IRAQ - Mar 8 - Iraq Surge Will 'Continue Beyond Summer'.

The top US general in Iraq says the military surge will continue "well beyond the summer" as leading Democrats in Congress vow to press ahead with legislation setting a timetable for withdrawal. General David Petraeus said there were "encouraging signs" that the military escalation in the Iraqi capital following the arrival of two of the five brigades scheduled for deployment to Baghdad was having a positive impact. Speaking to reporters in Baghdad for the first time since assuming command last month, however, Gen Petraeus cautioned that it was too early to tell whether the surge would succeed in curbing the sectarian violence that has plagued the Iraqi capital since the bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra - one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest shrines - in February 2006. Separately, Stephen Hadley, the White House national security adviser, echoed Gen Petraeus in saying there were some positive signs that the surge was damping the level of violence. But he added that the surge was in "the early stages, and we're going to have some good days and some bad days". Gen Petraeus said that while he currently had no plans to request more troops for the surge, he would ask for more later if required. "Right now we do not see other requests [for troops] looming out there", said Gen Petraeus. "That's not to say that some emerging mission or emerging task will not require that, and if it does, then we will ask for that". The Pentagon has already announced that more troops would be needed to support the 21,500 combat troops being sent to Iraq for the surge. The US defence secretary Robert Gates, said he would send 2,200 military police to Baghdad to deal with the growing number of detainees who are expected as the coalition forces clamp down on sectarian militias over the next few months. Gordon England, deputy defence secretary, this week also said that as many as 7,000 additional support troops might be needed to aid the US combat presence. He dismissed estimates from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office that as many as 28,000 support personnel could be required. The NYT reported that Lt Gen Raymond Odierno, the commander in charge of daily operations in Iraq, had recommended that the US maintain its escalation until February. Before leaving for Iraq, Gen Petraeus asked an anxious Congress for patience, telling lawmakers that results would not be immediate. But the American public has become pessimistic about the war. A recent USA Today/Gallup poll found that a record 59% of respondents believe the war was a mistake. The poll also showed that 58% wanted US troops to return home some time within the next 12 months; 26% thought the troops should remain "as long as needed"; and 13% believed Pres Bush should send more troops. Gen Petraeus said the five additional US combat brigades for deployment to Baghdad would be in place by June. He added that some of the 21,500 troops being sent to the country might be deployed to other violent regions, such as the province of Diyala, north-east of Baghdad. Since the surge began, US troops have stepped up operations throughout Baghdad, setting up outposts to break armed groups' sway over neighbourhoods. The general said US and Iraqi forces in Baghdad were walling off markets, a main target of insurgent attacks, and taking other steps to protect neighbourhoods. US officials say there has been a fall in the number of bodies discovered in the capital, and Iraqis say that in some districts families driven out by insurgent and militia threats are returning. But Gen Petraeus cautioned that "sensational attacks inevitably will continue", referring to the suicide bombings that have wreaked havoc in the capital.