Inside the Ring

Prison shortage

It’s the Army that maintains a network of detainee camps and prisons in Afghanistan and Iraq.

But now the Air Force plans to get more involved. Headquarters sent out a message yesterday asking for 100 airmen to volunteer for “detainee operations duty in Iraq.”

Applicants from grades of senior airmen to master sergeant must have a current top-secret clearance, an outstanding performance record and “certification from their commander that they possess the maturity and judgment for this duty.”

Character counts. The Army is beleaguered by a number of prison camp scandals in which detainees were abused, and in a relatively few cases killed.

The Air Force message says airmen will be called on for interrogation and analysis. Since those are not typical Air Force missions, candidates will have to undergo interrogation classes at Fort Bliss, Texas, and Fort Huachuca, Ariz.

The classes include the Initial Interrogator Course and the Enhanced Analyst and Interrogator Training Course.

Wiggle room

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld did some dancing this week over the issue of troop levels in Iraq. In the process, he managed a slight rebuke of an Army general.

It all unfolded over the weekend. Last Friday, Mr. Rumsfeld revealed some of his thinking on Iraq, saying U.S. forces would have to “undoubtedly bulge” for the December elections in Iraq before contracting again.

Two days later, Mr. Rumsfeld searched for wiggle room on the Sunday talks shows. “I said there ‘could be’ ” an increase in troops, he asserted on ABC’s “This Week.”

But that was not the language Mr. Rumsfeld had used. “They’re going to have elections under the new constitution in December,” he said two days earlier. “And during that period, armed forces — total, everybody’s, coalition and Iraqi — will undoubtedly bulge somewhat during those key election periods.”

Then came the mild rebuke. He was asked about public comments from Gen. Richard A. Cody, Army vice chief of staff, who predicted reduced troop levels in Iraq next year.

“You know, [a] lot of people talk about this subject,” Mr. Rumsfeld said. “It happens that those people aren’t involved in the decision-making process. The Army’s task is to organize, train and equip and plan to be ready for whatever might be needed. It’s General [George] Casey and General [John] Abizaid reporting to me and they will make their recommendations.”

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