Iraq: End of Combat Mission does not mean end of combat.

U.S. troops were sealing off a northern village early Wednesday as their Iraqi partners raided houses and arrested dozens of suspected insurgents. Even as Obama speaks of the end of the combat mission, combat willl continue to occur but ostensibly as helpers for the Iraqi security forces. However the U.S. continues to train these forces.

U.S. forces are still engaged in hunting down and killing al-Qaida militants - and could still have to defend themselves against attacks.

"Iraq still faces a hostile enemy who is determined to hinder progress," Gen. Lloyd Austin, the newly installed commander of the just under 50,000 U.S. troops still in Iraq said,"Make no mistake, our military forces here and those of the Iraqi nation remain committed to ensuring that our friends in Iraq succeed."

With the typical rhetorical pablum that is a required part of the naming rituals a new phase of the Iraq mission was pronounced.

""The remaining U.S. forces in Iraq would be "as combat ready, if need be, as any in our military," Biden said, flanked by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen for the 75-minute ceremony, which also changed the U.S. mission's name from "Operation Iraqi Freedom" to "Operation New Dawn." ""

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Of the remaining troops 4,500 will be special forces who will go on terror raids but with Iraqis tagging along.

Iraqi forces are heavily dependent on U.S. firepower, along with helicopters, spy data and other key tools for combating terrorists. Iraq will not be able to supply these tools for years to come. This will make the now sovereign Iraq dependent upon the U.S.

Hours before the raids, Lt. Col. Andy Ulrich gave his soldiers a pep talk to counter concerns they weren't on a worthwhile mission.

"You all are combat troops not doing a combat mission, although it looks smells and feels and hurts a lot like combat," Ulrich said.

Hmm. I would think that it smells, and feels and hurts like a duck it is a duck or something like that.