BAGHDAD: Iraqi security forces paraded in tanks and armored vehicles across Baghdad on Tuesday as they take control of towns and cities nationwide from departing US troops six years after the invasion.
Iraq was celebrating a national holiday to mark the June 30 pullback, a milestone in the recovery of a country battered by war, insurgency and sectarian bloodshed that has left tens of thousands of people dead since 2003.
Iraqis had celebrated into Monday night but soldiers and police were out in force to prevent insurgent groups spoiling the party as American troops quit their posts in urban centers, ahead of complete pullout by the end of 2011.
Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, however, said the nation s joy at the handover was mixed with sorrow for beloved friends and relatives who had been targeted by terror.
But he also took aim at critics of Iraq s army and police and insisted they were up to the task of defending the country in the wake of the US pullback.
It is a big mistake for people to think that the Iraqis will not handle the security issue, Maliki said.
It is an offence to the Iraqis. The people who said that the foreign troops would never withdraw and would keep permanent bases in our country were giving a green light to the terrorists to kill civilians.
President Jalal Talabani thanked US forces for their role in overthrowing now executed dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003, and in the years of bloodshed that followed.
They bore the burden and dangers against the most cruel regime and against the mutual enemy – the terror, Talabani said on state television.
The handover coincided with a US army announcement that four of its soldiers died from combat-related injuries on Monday, taking to 4,321 the number of American troops killed since the invasion.
General Ray Odierno, the top US commander in Iraq, told reporters he believed Iraq was now a better country.
I believe the Iraqi people are much better off not having a dictator such as Saddam Hussein in charge, he said. They are now going to be able to see that they can move ahead and the people of Iraq will have a say in their government.
Tuesday s pullback is part of a landmark security agreement signed last November between Baghdad and Washington covering the fate of the 133,000 US troops still in Iraq.
In the wake of bombings that have already killed more than 200 people this month, all leave for Iraqi security personnel has been cancelled.
Motorcycles, a favoured form of transport for several recent bombers, have also been banned from the streets.
Across Baghdad, tanks and armoured vehicles manned by soldiers and police were decorated with artificial flowers, flags and banners, as nationalistic songs and popular music played.
We are happy to receive the security responsibilities and we are able to totally protect our citizens, said policeman Ibrahim Al-Mashhadani.
Abu Mustapha, a carpenter, added: I believe that the security of the nation will improve when the US forces leave.
The security shake-up was celebrated by huge crowds in Baghdad s largest park on Monday.
Revellers had to undergo three security checks to enter but no one seemed to complain amid a jubilant atmosphere, where an onstage banner declared that Baghdad s sovereignty and independence had been recovered.
Even policemen joined in the fun, dancing with the partygoers.
Maliki warned earlier this month that insurgent groups and militias were likely to step up attacks in the run-up to June 30 in a bid to undermine confidence in Iraq s own security forces.
There have been several huge bombings since, the deadliest near the northern oil hub of Kirkuk on June 20 when a truck loaded with explosives was detonated, leaving 72 people dead and more than 200 wounded.
Only a small number of US forces in training and advisory roles will remain in urban areas, with the bulk of American troops in Iraq quartered elsewhere.
The Status of Forces Agreement, which set the pullback deadline, says US commanders must seek permission from Iraqi authorities to conduct operations, but American troops retain a unilateral right to legitimate self-defense.
