U.S. soldiers and Iraqi police leave their base for their last joint patrol in Khan Bani Saad, Iraq, ahead of Tuesday's deadline for the American pullback. Photo by Agence France-Presse.
Iraqi officials formally take control of the cities at midnight, a handover that filled many citizens with pride but also trepidation that government forces are not ready and that violence will rise.
Shiites fear more bombings by Sunni militants; Sunnis fear that the Shiite-dominated Iraqi security forces will give them little protection. [Red spray-painted X’s have shown up overnight on several Sunni homes.] American troops fear that the 650,000-member Iraqi military is not ready to maintain stability and deal with a stubborn insurgency. -- CBS News
The challenge for the Iraqis is immense.
Air Assault Mission - Iraqi national police officers run inside a CH-47 Chinook helicopter after completing Operation Winged Lion II, an Iraqi-led air assault clearance operationin the Ma’dain region outside eastern Baghdad, Iraq, June 26, 2009. More than 240 Iraqi police and U.S. Army soldiers conducted the mission to deny enemy movement into the city, collect intelligence and search for weapons caches. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Alex Licea.
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