BAGHDAD — Iraq and Iran pushed back Monday against U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter's criticisms over the fall of Ramadi to the Islamic State group, with an Iranian general going as far as saying America had "no will" to fight the extremists.
In Baghdad, a spokesman for Iraq's prime minister suggested Carter had "incorrect information," while Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the head of the elite Quds forces in Iran's Revolutionary Guard, offered his own assessment of American forces.
The war of words over the loss of Ramadi, amid other gains by the Islamic State group in recent days, lay bare the fissures among countries that have become allies of convenience against the militants. And as Iraqi troops continue to flee their advance, governments across the world are questioning whether relying on Iraqi troops and militiamen on the ground alone will be enough to stop them.
The criticism began Sunday, when Carter told CNN's State of the Union news show that Iraqi forces "vastly outnumbered" the Islamic State group, but still "showed no will to fight" and fled their advance on Ramadi.
On Monday, Saad al-Hadithi, a spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, said his government was surprised by Carter's comments.
"Carter was likely given incorrect information because the situation on ground is different," al-Hadithi told The Associated Press. "We should not judge the whole army based on one incident."
Al-Hadithi said the Iraqi government believes the fall of Ramadi was due to mismanagement and poor planning by some senior military commanders in charge. However, he did not elaborate, nor has any action been taken against those commanders.
In Iran, the daily newspaper Javan, which is seen as close to the Revolutionary Guard, quoted Soleimani as saying the U.S. didn't do a "damn thing" to stop the extremists' advance on Ramadi.
"Does it mean anything else than being an accomplice in the plot?" he reportedly asked, later saying the U.S. showed "no will" in fighting the Islamic State group.
Soleimani said Iran and its allies are the only forces that can deal with the threat.
"Today, there is nobody in confrontation with (the Islamic State group) except the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as nations who are next to Iran or supported by Iran," he said.
See Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.