Qaeda Busted in Baghdad: Gen.

Baghdad Commander says al Qaeda wing ousted from the city

By Peter Fearon, Newser Staff

Posted Nov 8, 2007 4:00 AM CST

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Qaeda Busted in Baghdad: Gen. — People gather at the Shorja street market in east Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, Nov. 3, 2007. More than four months after U.S. forces completed a 30,000-strong force buildup, the death toll for both Iraqis and Americans has fallen dramatically for two months running, and, as if sensing a possible shift in... (Associated Press)

The Iraqi-based terror network Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia has been ousted by US troops from every neighborhood in Baghdad where it once operated, according to Maj. Gen. Joseph Fil, commander of US forces in the city. Fil also tells the New York Times that violence is down significantly.

"Murder victims are down 80% from the peak" and attacks involving improvised bombs are down 70%, he said. "The Iraqi people have decided they’ve had it up to here with violence." Stability is “close, but not yet within touch," said Fil, who added that troops have yet to clear about 13% of the city controlled by Shiite militias. (More Iraq stories.)

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