Americans expect increased violence in Iraq

The American army expected the pace of the acts of violence to increase in Iraq during the coming weeks while the country is being torn by a political vacuum with attempts made by politicians and religious groups to form a new government.

US army general Donald Aliston, the spokesman for the coalition forces which are led by the USA, said that the gunmen are making use of this transitional period to launch bloody attacks and obstruct the attained political progress.

In a press conference in Baghdad, he stressed that the increase in the number of attacks which took place last week in various parts of Iraq show clearly that al-Qaida organization and the other armed groups still have the ability to launch armed operations.

Aleston said that the coalition forces arrested in 2005 some 469 fighters including 116 Egyptians, 92 Syrians, 62 Saudis, and 56 Sudanese, noting that those who drive the booby trapped cars which are used in suicide bombing are mostly foreign fighters at a rate of nine out of ten, giving no hint how those suicide bombers are identified.

On the other hand, he welcomed the increase in the number of the Iraqi security forces which tolled 223,000 man by the beginning of this January including 118,000 policemen and 105,000 soldiers.