[On Tuesday, at least four Iraqi civilians were killed by U.S. military
fire in a Shi'ite neighborhood in northern Baghdad, Middle East Newsline reported. The U.S. military said
the civilians were passengers of a minibus whose driver entered a restricted
area.]
In a briefing on Monday, Farris said Iran remains heavily involved in
insurgency operations in Baghdad. He cited Sadr City, with a population of
2.5 million and what he termed a "hub for these activities coming from
Iran."
Military officials said the Multinational Force has agreed with Farris.
They said the military has determined that EFPs supplied by Iran contributed
to an increase in bombing attacks around the Iraqi capital.
"We're still seeing a large number of Iranian-made weapons still exist
here in Iraq," U.S. military spokesman Rear Adm. Gregory Smith said on Nov.
18. "The degree to which Iran has ceased completely its training, equipping,
financing and resourcing has yet to be completely witnessed."
The Shi'ite militias have continued to receive weapons, training and
funds from Teheran, officials said. They said the weapons have included
so-called "lob bombs" manufactured in Iran.
In October, U.S. forces captured two Iranian operatives in the Baghdad
area. The operatives were said to belong to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps and facilitated operations by the new Special Groups.
"In my sector the assessment is we have not seen any slowing down or any
indicators that these Special Groups are going to curtail their activities
or quit receiving this support that's coming from outside the country,"
Farris said.
Farris said attacks have declined by 75 percent since May 2007. But he
acknowledged that his troops patrol only 20 percent of Sadr City to avoid
friction with the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army.
"They're very lethal, they're organized, they're sophisticated, and I
have not seen that their operations have declined or diminished in any way,
shape or form here in the last several months," Farris said.
|