Iraqi Prime Minister Says Bombings, Violence in Baghdad Down Dramatically

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Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Sunday homicide attacks and other bombings in the Iraqi capital have dropped dramatically since last year's high, calling it a sign of the end of sectarian violence. A top U.S. general here said he believes the drop is sustainable, as Iraqis turn away from extremists.

Al-Maliki said "terrorist acts" including car bombings and other spectacular, Al Qaeda-style attacks dropped by 77 percent. He called it a sign that Sunni-Shiite violence was nearly gone from Baghdad.

"We are all realizing now that what Baghdad was seeing every day — dead bodies in the streets and morgues — is ebbing remarkably," al-Maliki told reporters at his office in the U.S.-guarded Green Zone.

"This is an indication that sectarianism intended as a gate of evil and fire in Iraq is now closed," he said.

Wow! These are tremendous statements.

Now the sounds of warfare are rare. American troops have set up small outposts in some of the capital's most dangerous enclaves. Locals previously lukewarm to the presence of U.S. soldiers patrol alongside them. And a historic lane on the eastern banks of the Tigris is set to reopen later this year, lined with seafood restaurants and an art gallery.

Gotta get their economy giong.

Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, commander of U.S. forces south of the capital, said Sunday he believed the decrease would hold, because of what he called a "groundswell" of support from regular Iraqis.

"If we didn't have so many people coming forward to help, I'd think this is a flash in the pan. But that's just not the case," Lynch told a small group of reporters over lunch in the Green Zone.

He attributed the sharp drop in attacks to the American troop buildup, the setup of small outposts at the heart of Iraqi communities, and help from locals fed up with Al
Qaeda and other extremists.

"These people — Sunni and Shiite — are saying, `I've had enough,"' Lynch said.

I'm very pleased and proud of these developments. Though this war has not gone as planned, our soldiers have always done their best. This includes my brother, Danny, who's in the heart of all this. I believe he's still in Baghdad.

The U.S. military's best has been outstanding. It has taken time, but we're seeing some fruit. I'm sure an increasing number of Iraqis agree. Al-Maliki wouldn't be speaking the way he is if we weren't seeing progress.