Iraq war may go for decades: report

23 November 2005The Australian

The war in Iraq could last for decades with British troops unlikely to withdraw without a "highly unlikely" split with Washington, a report says today.The Oxford Research Group non-governmental organisation, which assesses constructive approaches to dealing with international terrorism and the "war on terror", says the war in Iraq is only in its early stages.

"Given that the al-Qaeda movement and its affiliates are seeking to achieve their aims over a period of decades rather than years, the probability is that, short of major political changes in the USA, the Iraq war might well be measured over a similar time span," the report concludes.

It says the presence of coalition troops in Iraq since the March 2003 US-led invasion has been a "gift" to Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda.

The terror network has gained recruits by portraying their presence as a neo-Christian occupation of a main Muslim country, the report says.