Troops Respond to Iraq: ‘We’re a Skeptical Bunch’

DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia —  American soldiers in Saudi Arabia greeted Iraq’s promise today to withdraw from Kuwait with guarded optimism and said they believe that the Persian Gulf War will continue for some time.

But even before President Bush said on national television that he rejected the Iraqi proposal, many U.S. troops awaiting flights to the war front said they didn’t trust the Iraqi leader.

“We’ll see; we’re a skeptical bunch here,” said Tech. Sgt. Loretta Bryant of Langley, Va., who was among the first U.S. troops deployed in the Gulf after Iraq seized Kuwait on Aug. 2.

“If it’s true, I don’t know who I’ll hug first, my children or my husband,” added Bryant, the mother of 19-month and 5-year-old boys.

When the news of Iraq’s proposal came over the television in a large hangar at a central U.S. air base in Dhahran, where troops were lining up for flights to northern Saudi Arabia, it hardly caused a stir.

As the initial report began to sink in, the reaction of most U.S. soldiers could be summed up in the words of Staff Sgt. Joe Martin of Hampton, Va.: “I’m ecstatic but skeptical.”

Nevertheless, many soldiers said they did not believe that the Iraqi leader was sincere after they heard Saddam Hussein’s conditions, which included linking Iraq’s withdrawal to Israel giving up the occupied territories, a demand the United States has long said it would not accept.

“I don’t trust the bastard. We’re going in,” said Cpl. Jared Mullins, 22, of Daingerfield, Tex., as he headed to rejoin the 1st Cavalry Division in northern Saudi Arabia. As he spoke, F-15 bombers streaked overhead from a nearby U.S. base to continue heavy bombing of Iraqi positions in southern Kuwait.

“I think this thing may be far from over,” Army Staff Sgt. Paul George of Sacramento said.