Iraq Close to Civil War, Generals Tell Congress

By Tom Bowman

Published August 3, 2006 at 4:00 PM EDT

An Iraqi youth carries the wreckage of an explosives-laiden scooter which blew up in Baghdad's Shorjah marketplace. Ten people were killed and 20 wounded in the blast.

The surge in Baghdad's sectarian violence in recent weeks means Iraq is closer to civil war, according to two of the Pentagon's most senior generals. Gen. John Abizaid, chief of U.S. Central Command, and General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified today before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld testified alongside Abizaid and Pace, but he did not comment directly on the prospect of civil war.

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