Petraeus Says Detainee Situation Has Improved In Iraq, Calls For Plan To Combat Cyber-Recruiting

The general who oversaw the troop surge in Iraq says the number of detainees there has fallen dramatically in recent years. Speaking yesterday at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, General David Petraeus said there was less recidivism, thanks to an effort to avoid hardening captured enemies.

Petraeus says at the height of the conflict, the country had some 27 thousand detainees, in what he called a “catch and release” program. He says that number is now down to about 5,500, with many slated for transfer to Iraqi custody.

He calls that a considerable success, saying the old way amounted to a “terrorist university.”

“They were turning what were probably moderate bad guys into very bad guys right there underneath our eyes, and so we had to get some counter-intelligence in there. We had to understand inside the wire what was happening just as we were seeking to understand what was going on outside the wire.”

Petraeus says that meant identifying hardcore detainees who couldn’t be rehabilitated, and separating them from those who could.

Raw audio from Petraeus on detainees:

–

CYBER-RECRUITING

Petraeus, who now oversees the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, also says political leaders have to find a way to combat terrorist recruitment over the Internet – the site of a “battle of ideas.”

Petraeus says the web linked a radical Yemeni cleric to the shooter in last fall’s massacre at Fort Hood, as well as the attempted bomber of an airliner bound for Detroit last Christmas. He says the Internet allows terrorists to attract converts from across the globe.

“Cyberspace is a battlefield. People are out there competing – they are fighting in cyberspace. It’s a battle of ideas; people are proselytizing.”

Petraeus says political and military leaders are wrestling with how to crack down on terrorist cyber-recruitment, while balancing it with the right to free speech.

Raw audio on fighting terrorism online:

–

– WEB EXTRA –

Petraeus also touched on President Obama’s speech at West Point three months ago concerning Afghanistan. Monday night Petraeus called a few of the president’s words concerning drawdown “very carefully chosen.” Hear raw audio from the general below:

–