Report calls for Iraqi police to disband

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- The Iraqi national police should be dissolved and reconstituted with a new mission because it is corrupt and not trusted, a U.S. law enforcement expert said.

Charles Ramsey, a former Washington, D.C, police chief, said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press" the independent commission studying Iraq's problems found "a lot of serious issues" with the national police.

"It's striking how much they're distrusted," Ramsey said.

Besides addressing national and internal security issues, the Iraqi Security Forces Independent Commission said Iraq would be unable secure the country for at least 12 to 18 months and Iraqi's assumption of a territorial defense could be three to four years away. It also said more emphasis on political reconciliation over security could accelerate the draw-down of U.S. combat troops.

"The sectarian nature of the national police is what's holding it back," Ramsey said.

The commission has recommended disbanding the national force and re-form it with a mission "that is less sectarian in nature."

Ramsey said and other police chiefs on the commission were encouraged at the level of training the national police force was receiving.

"It has a lot of potential," he said.