Rumsfeld Drops In on Troops in Iraq

In a trip aimed at raising the spirits of U.S. soldiers, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld made a surprise Christmas Eve visit today to the military base near Mosul where a suspected suicide bomber killed 14 troops in a mess tent.

Rumsfeld, criticized for his war planning and for comments he made to U.S. troops regarding the lack of vehicle armor, landed at an airfield in northern Iraq before dawn.

Surrounded by tight security, Rumsfeld walked immediately from his plane to a combat surgical hospital where many of the soldiers wounded in the blast were treated, although only the least injured remained there. Most of the 69 people wounded in the attacks have been transferred to Germany for treatment.

A total of 22 people, including four U.S. civilians and four Iraqi soldiers, were killed in the bombing at Forward Operating Base Marez, south of Mosul. The explosion Tuesday was the single biggest attack on a U.S. military installation in Iraq.

Military officials said Thursday that they suspected that the suicide attacker was wearing an Iraqi military uniform, suggesting that he had disguised himself as a soldier or had infiltrated the country’s newly formed security forces.

“What we think is likely, but certainly not certain, is that an individual in an Iraqi military uniform, possibly with a vest-worn explosive device, was inside the facility and detonated the facility, causing this tragedy,” Brig. Gen. Carter Ham, commander of Task Force Olympia in Mosul, told CNN.

In one of ousted President Saddam Hussein’s palaces that is now part of the U.S. military base outside Mosul, Rumsfeld told a gathering of more than 100 troops today: “I am deeply grateful to all of you. You will look back in 10 or 20 or 30 years and know you were part of something very important. I respect you. I wish you all a Merry Christmas.”

Rumsfeld has faced a barrage of criticism in recent weeks for appearing insensitive to U.S. troops and their families. He was attacked for not personally signing condolence letters to the families of troops killed in Iraq, relying instead on a mechanical pen. Critics also said Rumsfeld appeared dismissive to a soldier’s complaint about inadequate vehicle armor.

In response to the criticisms and polls showing that a majority of Americans believe Rumsfeld should resign or be fired, President Bush and the Defense secretary each made public appearances this week to shore up his support. The surprise trip to Iraq was seen by many as another attempt to demonstrate Rumsfeld’s commitment to the troops.

At a news briefing Wednesday, Rumsfeld said he stayed “awake at night with concern for those at risk.” His voice cracking during his remarks, Rumsfeld said he wanted “those who matter most -- the men and women in uniform and their families -- to know that.”

Meeting today with troops with the 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Rumsfeld acknowledged that the situation in Iraq was difficult and looked bleak to some people. Drawing comparisons with Afghanistan immediately after the fall of the Taliban, Rumsfeld said he believed that Iraq also could make progress.

“There is no doubt in my mind this is achievable,” he said.

Rumsfeld urged troops to keep up their morale even “when it looks bleak, when one worries about how it’s going to come out, when one reads and hears the naysayers and the doubters who say it can’t be done, and that we’re in a quagmire here.”

Rumsfeld said there had been such doubts “throughout every conflict in the history of the world.”

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said Rumsfeld’s “short visit” had been planned for some time and would include multiple stops in Iraq. He said Rumsfeld, “cognizant of the recent events” near Mosul, decided to stop there first.

No itinerary was disclosed for security reasons.

The trip was kept secret to reduce the risk of attack by insurgents, many of whom are believed to be in Mosul. The once peaceful city, 225 miles north of Baghdad, erupted in violence after U.S. forces invaded Fallouja.

Times staff writers Monte Morin in Los Angeles and Esther Schrader in Washington contributed to this report. Wire services were used in compiling it.