US army battles to keep soldiers in Iraq

Those who were planning to retire or otherwise leave in the next few months will have to remain with their unit until it returns to its home base.

Soldiers whose terms of enlistment have expired will be offered up to $10,000 to serve another three years.

Tap Here to Add The Daily Star As A Trusted Source

An army spokesman said the moves were designed to maintain cohesion and combat effectiveness.

BBC Pentagon correspondent Nick Childs says it is another sign of the strain the US army is under because of the operation in Iraq.

He adds that it will encourage critics who say the military simply does not have enough troops to go around.

The "stop loss order" to troops currently in Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan means they have to remain in service while their units are deployed - and for up to 90 days after they return to their home bases.

Our correspondent says there are already some stop loss orders in place and US army officials are playing down the significance of this planned new extension of the freeze.

But he adds that it could mean real hardship for some soldiers.

The order will affect about 7,000 soldiers currently in Iraq who were either due to end their service or retire before their unit redeployed, said army spokseman Major Steve Stover.

US military officials say re-enlistment bonuses are a common practice, albeit perhaps not normally involving such large sums.

Meanwhile, three soldiers have been discharged from the US army for mistreating Iraqi prisoners of war.

They were found guilty of beating and harassing detainees at a detention camp in the south of the country.

An internal inquiry found soldiers had thrown prisoners down and kicked them in the head, groin and abdomen in an incident at Camp Bucca last May.

The three soldiers, a woman and two men who said they acted in self-defence, have all returned to the United States.