By NNN-KUNA
Baghdad : The US army will pull out five brigades by the end of July following improvement of the security conditions and declining attacks against coalition and Iraqi forces, a senior US military official.
Admiral Gregory Smith, Director of the Multi-National Force’s (MNF) Communications Division, told a news conference Sunday five American brigades would be withdrawn in July.
These five brigades, he said, were among 20 others to be pulled out as of end of July.
The number of attacks against the coalition and Iraqi forces declined by 60 per cent since the start of operation Law Enforcement, Smith said. A year ago, he said, the number of attacks was 200 daily nationwide but it dropped to 82 last month.
Smith said the Iraqi and American forces have jointly found many hideouts of weapons and explosives, as well as killing Al-Qaeda militants.
He said the US side would ask for explanation from the Iranians during the upcoming negotiations over the support of “special groups” in Iraq. There were Iraqis receiving training in Iran and then train others in Iraq, he added.
Smith, meanwhile, said there were over 24,000 detainees in US detention facilities.