US: Pentagon was forced to step up its firepower dramatically yesterday, cancelling the demobilisation of some 25,000 soldiers who had been due to go home after completing their tour of duty in Iraq.
"We're going to do whatever it takes to ensure that we're successful out here, and if that includes bringing in more troops, we will," the commander of US forces in Iraq, Gen John Abizaid, told the Washington Post.
"We will do whatever is necessary to get the situation under control, to include bringing in additional forces \ extending forces."
He added: "Everything is on the table."
The Pentagon currently has 135,000 troops in Iraq. But as many as 25,000 of those were counting down the days to their departure, as the military completes its annual rotation, replacing war-weary soldiers with fresh troops.
Their demobilisation looked increasingly distant yesterday, as did the prospect for President Bush's plans to scale down the number of US forces in Iraq by 25,000 before November's US presidential election.