IRAQ Other developments

Three years into the war, Iraqi security forces are still unable to operate independently of U.S.-led foreign forces, the general in charge of training said Tuesday. The building of Iraqi police and army forces is "moving apace" and performance of the forces has been "quite remarkable" given conditions in the country, said Lt. Gen. Martin Dempsey, who heads the effort to help the Iraqi government develop, equip and train the forces. But he declined to say when they might be able to operate independently. Pentagon officials said there are about 265,000 Iraqi security forces, including army and police, and that by the end of the year there will be 325,000. Asked how many Iraqi units are able to operate on their own, Dempsey told a Pentagon press conference: "It's just not appropriate yet to be thinking in terms of independent anything in Iraq. This, remember, is a nation at war."
Explosives experts found the bodies of two missing American soldiers tied together with a bomb between one victim's legs after searchers were led to the remains by physical evidence and tips from Iraqis, the military said Tuesday. But Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, said it was too early in the investigation to comment on whether the soldiers died during an insurgent attack on a U.S. Army checkpoint, or were abducted and killed later. He also declined to give more details about the June 16 attack that ended with Pfc. Kristian Menchaca of Houston and Pfc. Thomas Tucker of Madras, Ore., missing. Spc. David J. Babineau, 25, of Springfield, Mass., was found dead at the scene. "We've brought in forensics experts and criminal investigators to get to the bottom of this and we will not stop until we've got the facts," Thurman said at a news conference. The bodies of Menchaca and Tucker were found the evening of June 19 after a search by 8,000 U.S. and Iraqi soldiers, dubbed Operation Fallen Eagle.
Associated Press