Iraq: No extension of US pullback date from cities
BAGHDAD: Iraq will not extend the June 30 deadline for US troops to withdraw from urban areas, a spokesman said yesterday despite concerns about a resurgence of violence in recent weeks.
The government has insisted it is committed to the timeline laid out in a US-Iraqi security agreement that calls for American forces to pull back from urban areas by the summer and from the rest of the country by the end of 2011.
But a series of high-profile bombings have cast doubt on the readiness of Iraqi forces to take over security responsibilities. In particular, US commanders have pointed to the volatile northern city of Mosul as a possible exception to the withdrawal plans.
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