Loan Adviser

Fireworks in Baghdad after U.S. withdrawal

A countdown broadcast on television in Iraq came to zero at the deadline at midnight to allow U.S. soldiers to withdraw to bases outside the cities.

The withdrawal of troops Americans have been completed in all the cities after all the sacrifices they made in the interest of safety, said Sadiq al-Rikabi, high adviser of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. Now we are celebrating the resumption of sovereignty.

The Pentagon offered no comment regarding the expiration of the term.

fireworks, No bombs, colored the sky of Baghdad on Monday evening, and thousands of people attended a party at a park, where several singers chanted patriotic songs. Speakers in police barracks and military checkpoints performed similar recordings of songs throughout the day, while Iraqi army vehicles decorated with flowers and flags of the country patrolled the capital.

Hours before, the main U.S. commander in the Middle East said he hoped that Iraqi security forces are well prepared, despite a recent series of attacks that caused over 250 deaths.

The explosions caused concern that the violence will intensify in urban areas after the withdrawal of U.S. troops but the Iraqi government claims that its troops are ready to take charge on Tuesday and declared a holiday for National Day of Sovereignty.

The U.S. combat troops United States should withdraw from Iraqi cities no later than Tuesday, under a security agreement that also sets his departure from the country by the end of 2011.

Some will stay in cities such as trainers and advisers, but most of the 130,000 soldiers in the country have been quartered in large bases far from urban centers.

U.S. Middle East commander, General David Petraeus, said to be focal point in Baghdad, Mosul and Basra, where the forces of his country will share intelligence information and respond to requests for help from the Iraqis.

Petraeus was concerned about the prominent series of attacks but said the daily average of attacks, between 10 and 15, remained low compared to 160 in June 2007.

While there will certainly be challenges, because there are many political, social and development difficult, we feel confident that the Iraqi security forces continue the process of taking over security tasks in their own country, Petraeus said after a meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo.

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The journalist from The Associated Press Sameer N. Yacoub contributed to this report.