Three more American troops were killed in Iraq Sunday in the vicinity of Baghdad. Insurgents also killed 27 Iraqis when they fired mortars near the Defense Ministry Sunday just as politicians began negotiations to form a new government.
The three Americans were killed when a roadside bomb hit their vehicle just northwest of Baghdad according to American military sources.
Eight U.S. troops were killed in the past two days in Iraq and at least 61 Americans have been killed in the month of April. January was the deadliest month so far this year with 62 U.S. troops killed. March saw only 31 Americans killed, the lowest numbers since February 2004. With one week remaining, April is on pace to be the deadliest month so far this year.
Meanwhile, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad told reporters at a press conference that sectarian militias pose 'a serious challenge to stability in Iraq to building a successful country based on rule of law.' He urged the new government to break up the militias and make them part of the Iraqi security forces.
'There is a need for a decommissioning, demobilization and reintegration plan for these unauthorized military formations,' he told reporters in Baghdad.
The United States is hoping that the newly appointed Prime Minister, Jawad al-Maliki, can bring an end to the sectarian violence that has raged the past two months in Iraq and threatens to plunge that nation into civil war.
