Troops may leave Mosul by June 30 - U.S. general
* U.S. troops sweep Mosul neighborhoods
* Insurgency continues to wane - Odierno
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON, May 8 (Reuters) - The top U.S. commander in Iraq said on Friday that U.S. combat forces could be able to leave the violence-torn city of Mosul by a June 30 deadline for withdrawing American combat brigades from Iraqi cities.
Army General Ray Odierno said the final decision will be made late next month, after U.S. and Iraqi forces conclude neighborhood sweeps to clear militants from Mosul, the final stronghold for al Qaeda in Iraq and other Sunni groups.
U.S. military officials blame al Qaeda for a recent upswing in high-profile attacks, which they say are meant to return Iraq to the wholesale sectarian slaughter that followed al Qaeda's bombing of the al-Askari Shi'ite mosque in Samarra in 2006.
The rise in high-casualty attacks has stirred worries about the ability of Iraqi forces to impose security after June 30, when U.S. combat forces are expected to leave Iraq's cities under a bilateral agreement with Baghdad.
U.S. combat forces are due to leave Iraq by August 2010 under President Barack Obama's plan, and all U.S. troops would be out of the country by the start of 2012 under the U.S.-Iraqi agreement.
Odierno said a U.S.-Iraqi counterinsurgency operation has been under way in Mosul for 75 days.
"We expect that to end here within about 30 to 45 days. And then there will be a decision to be made," Odierno told reporters at the Pentagon.
He said the latest security assessment in Mosul showed "some problems that we have to work through."
"But, in fact, there's potential that they can handle the mission starting on 1 July," Odierno said.
"I think we're on track. We should be in pretty good shape by the end of June," he added.
The general said U.S. troops are out of every Iraqi city but Baghdad and Mosul. About 20 percent of U.S. forces, who are not considered combat troops, would remain in the cities after July 1 to advise and support Iraqi security forces.
The United States has 134,000 troops in Iraq, he said.
Odierno added that the insurgent threat continues to wane, with a fractured network of Sunni groups fielding less-sophisticated munitions and no sign that Sunni violence is feeding a resurgence of Shi'ite militias.
"We have seen no formation of militias or any movement to form militias, any talk of forming militias in order to go after sectarian violence, so that is a very positive sign," he said.
But Odierno warned that Iraq will likely see residual violence from "insurgent elements" for up to 15 years.
Iraqi security forces say they scored a victory against Sunni militants in April by capturing Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, believed to head the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq. U.S. officials have not been able to confirm his identity, Odierno said. (Editing by Paul Simao)
* Insurgency continues to wane - Odierno
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON, May 8 (Reuters) - The top U.S. commander in Iraq said on Friday that U.S. combat forces could be able to leave the violence-torn city of Mosul by a June 30 deadline for withdrawing American combat brigades from Iraqi cities.
Army General Ray Odierno said the final decision will be made late next month, after U.S. and Iraqi forces conclude neighborhood sweeps to clear militants from Mosul, the final stronghold for al Qaeda in Iraq and other Sunni groups.
U.S. military officials blame al Qaeda for a recent upswing in high-profile attacks, which they say are meant to return Iraq to the wholesale sectarian slaughter that followed al Qaeda's bombing of the al-Askari Shi'ite mosque in Samarra in 2006.
The rise in high-casualty attacks has stirred worries about the ability of Iraqi forces to impose security after June 30, when U.S. combat forces are expected to leave Iraq's cities under a bilateral agreement with Baghdad.
U.S. combat forces are due to leave Iraq by August 2010 under President Barack Obama's plan, and all U.S. troops would be out of the country by the start of 2012 under the U.S.-Iraqi agreement.
Odierno said a U.S.-Iraqi counterinsurgency operation has been under way in Mosul for 75 days.
"We expect that to end here within about 30 to 45 days. And then there will be a decision to be made," Odierno told reporters at the Pentagon.
He said the latest security assessment in Mosul showed "some problems that we have to work through."
"But, in fact, there's potential that they can handle the mission starting on 1 July," Odierno said.
"I think we're on track. We should be in pretty good shape by the end of June," he added.
The general said U.S. troops are out of every Iraqi city but Baghdad and Mosul. About 20 percent of U.S. forces, who are not considered combat troops, would remain in the cities after July 1 to advise and support Iraqi security forces.
The United States has 134,000 troops in Iraq, he said.
Odierno added that the insurgent threat continues to wane, with a fractured network of Sunni groups fielding less-sophisticated munitions and no sign that Sunni violence is feeding a resurgence of Shi'ite militias.
"We have seen no formation of militias or any movement to form militias, any talk of forming militias in order to go after sectarian violence, so that is a very positive sign," he said.
But Odierno warned that Iraq will likely see residual violence from "insurgent elements" for up to 15 years.
Iraqi security forces say they scored a victory against Sunni militants in April by capturing Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, believed to head the al Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq. U.S. officials have not been able to confirm his identity, Odierno said. (Editing by Paul Simao)
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