US military: 'Violence is down in Iraq'

Violence in Iraq has fallen to its lowest level since a mosque attack in 2006, which triggered a deadly wave of sectarian violence, the US military has said.

The bombing of the golden-domed al-Askari mosque in Samarra, north of Baghdad, in February 2006 led to the deadliest phase in the country since the allied invasion in March 2003.

Lieutenant-General Raymond Odierno said attacks in Baghdad had also fallen by about 50 per cent since January, just before Washington began pouring 30,000 extra troops into Iraq to try to drag the nation back from the brink of civil war.

US forces launched a security crackdown in Baghdad in February which later spread to other provinces, targeting Sunni Islamist al-Qaeda and other Sunni Arab insurgents as well as Shia militias.

Lt-Gen Odierno said: "There are still way too many civilian casualties inside of Baghdad and Iraq."

But he said the number of sectarian killings in the capital had fallen from an average of about 32 a day to 12 this year.

"Al-Qaeda in Iraq is increasingly being pushed out of Baghdad and the surrounding areas. They are now seeking refuge elsewhere in the country and even fleeing Iraq," Lt-Gen Odierno said.

He added that there had been no sign of any reprisal attacks since a Baghdad shooting incident on Sunday involving US security firm Blackwater in which 11 people were killed.

US and Iraqi officials have launched a joint inquiry into the incident, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government announcing it had halted Blackwater's operations and would review the activities of all local and foreign security firms.

"It's amazing to me the great restraint that the Iraqis showed and we're very thankful for that," Lt-Gen Odierno said.

© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.