Austin to replace Odierno in Iraq, says U.S. army

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Army Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin III will take over as commanding general for U.S. Forces-Iraq, replacing Gen. Ray Odierno, a media advisor of the U.S. army said on Tuesday. “Lloyd Austin has been appointed for this post in Iraq and will assume command within three months after the completion of Odierno’s mission in the country,” Nader Suleiman told IraqiNews.com news agency. Let. Gen. Lloyd J Austin is currently serving as the Senior Assistant to the Head of the Joint of Staffs and had served twice in Iraq when he first led the Third Infantry Division, which entered Baghdad in April 2003, and the second was, when he acted as the second man in the command of the Multinational forces in February 2008 till April 2009. U.S. forces are scheduled to draw down tens of thousands of troops from Iraq over the next few months, leaving fewer than 50,000 there by the end of the summer. According to New York Times, U.S. President, Barack Obama , had requested Odierno and upon a recommendation from Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates, to continue serving in his post till September, and will oversee the reduction of the U.S. troops to 50 thousand until the complete withdrawal of these troops at the end of August 2011. NH (P)/SH 1