Odierno: Parts of Baghdad may be turned over

[unhappycamper]

Odierno: Parts of Baghdad may be turned over
By Erik Slavin, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Sunday, November 18, 2007

CAMP STRIKER, Iraq — Parts of Anbar province and Baghdad will likely be turned over to Iraqi security forces control as early as the beginning of next year because of ongoing improvements in security, the commander of Multi-National Corps-Iraq said Saturday.

Haditha, Fallujah, Hit and other former danger zones in Anbar should be ready for turnover between January and the summer, Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno said.

A security turnover also will likely come for some neighborhoods in Iraq’s capital, he said.

“I think we’ll see it a little bit, in pieces of Baghdad from the beginning of the year through the summer,” Odierno said.

The U.S. military has made several announcements recently showing drops in insurgent attacks.

However, the question on many minds in Iraq is whether the lower levels or violence reflect a short-term rollback or a clear trend.


Rest of article at: http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=50352