Pentagon says half Iraq’s Army divisions take lead

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A fifth Iraqi Army division took
control of a section of the country from U.S. forces on
Tuesday, pushing to 50 percent the number of Iraqi divisions
that have picked up primary responsibility for operations,
according to the Pentagon.

U.S. Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman said the
Iraqi division took primary control of an area that includes
the cities of Tikrit and Kirkuk, north of Baghdad.

While calling the transfer of control “a milestone,”
Whitman noted the daunting security challenges still facing
military forces in some of Iraq’s major population centers,
notably the capital.

“I know that we’ve all been focused recently on the
security challenge in Baghdad,” Whitman said. “We’ve always
said that the country is not monolithic when it comes to the
security operations, though.

“There’s progress being made in other parts of the country
that shouldn’t go unnoticed,” he said.

Whitman would not say when the next Iraqi Army division
might take control of its area of operations. Of Iraq’s 18
provinces, the Pentagon says 14 are generally secure.