Democrats clash in crucial debate

The two rivals held their second debate in five days

The two main Democratic presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, have accused each other of negative campaigning in a TV debate.

The two White House hopefuls also attacked each other's policies on health care, trade and foreign policy, including the Iraq war.

It was their final face-to-face encounter before next week's crucial primaries in Ohio and Texas.

Mr Obama has won the previous 11 primaries and caucuses.

Analysts say Mrs Clinton needs to win a majority of delegates in both states to stay in the race to choose the Democratic candidate at the national nominating convention in August, ahead of the November elections.

Blame game

Accusations of dirty tricks and negative campaigning have dogged the past week of the nomination race.

In the opening minutes of the televised debate in Cleveland, Ohio, the two politely but firmly accused each other of spreading misinformation about their policies.

"The charges that Senator Obama's campaign has made regarding fliers and mailers and other information that he has been putting out about my health care plan and my position on Nafta (the North America Free Trade Agreement) have been very disturbing to me," Mrs Clinton said.

Mr Obama retorted that his rival's campaign had "constantly sent out negative attacks on us... We haven't whined about it because I understand that's the nature of these campaigns."

Both insisted they stood for universal healthcare, and that the other's programme would leave some people without cover.

Mr Obama sought to draw a line, however, under the appearance of a controversial photograph of him wearing traditional Somali robes during a visit to Kenya in 2006.

He said he believed Mrs Clinton when she said she did not know where the photo had come from.

Mrs Clinton and Mr Obama went on to say that they would both seek to renegotiate Nafta with Canada and Mexico, under threat of opting out of the 14-year-old pact.

Many workers in Ohio and other states hard-hit by factory closures blame the deal for job losses.

It was on foreign policy that there was the strongest contrast between the two candidates.

Mrs Clinton repeated her stance that her qualifications and experience as former first lady and New York senator put her in the best position to be the next commander-in-chief.

Mr Obama replied that experience should not be confused with longevity in Washington, saying Mrs Clinton's vote in favour of authorising the war in Iraq in 2002 was a massive strategic blunder.

Obama momentum

It was hard to define an outright winner of the debate, says our correspondent, but there was nothing to suggest Mrs Clinton did enough to turn the tide that has been moving in Mr Obama's favour.

Mrs Clinton now needs to win a majority of the delegates in the remaining state primaries and caucuses to stay in the race to choose the Democratic candidate for November's presidential election.

Ohio and Texas, both big states, are being seen as must wins for her.

Several polls suggest Mr Obama is gaining ground in both Texas and Ohio. The Illinois senator is leading in Texas for the first time, with 50% compared to 46% for Mrs Clinton, according to a CNN poll.

On Tuesday, Mr Obama won endorsement from a former rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Christopher Dodd.

On the Republican side, front-runner John McCain has also been campaigning in Ohio, as the party prepares to hold its own primary in the state, also on 4 March.

Bush addresses US economy fears

Mr Bush also warned Iran over its nuclear plans

President George W Bush has admitted US economic growth is slowing, but in his final State of the Union address urged Americans to have long-term confidence.

The president acknowledged that the US was facing "uncertainty".

A $150bn (£76bn) stimulus plan negotiated with Congress would help, he said, and must be passed soon.

Mr Bush also said his troop "surge" in Iraq was succeeding after a long and costly war, and that al-Qaeda was "on the run" and would be defeated.

He called on Iran's leaders to cease their "support for terror abroad", although he said the US respected the country's people.

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said that while they agreed with Mr Bush on the need for a bipartisan approach, he "offered little more than the status quo".

"At a time when our economy is on shaky ground and our leadership around the world is eroding, the status quo won't do," they said in a joint statement.

Oil dependence

Mr Bush acknowledged that the US was "undergoing a period of economic uncertainty", but sought to reassure the nation.

"At kitchen tables across our country, there is concern about our economic future," he said.

But, he added: "In the long run, Americans can be confident about our economic growth."

Mr Bush urged Congress not to expand the economic stimulus package beyond what had been agreed, or risk derailing it. He also urged lawmakers to make his tax cuts permanent.

Echoing a theme of his 2006 address, when he spoke of the US being "addicted to oil", Mr Bush spoke about the importance of US energy independence.

"Our security, our prosperity and our environment all require reducing our dependence on oil," he said.

Mr Bush also urged Tehran to suspend its nuclear enrichment programme and "come clean" about its intentions.

He continued: "But above all, know this: America will confront those who threaten our troops, we will stand by our allies, and we will protect our vital interests in the Gulf."

'American response'

On Iraq, Mr Bush acknowledged that the "enemy is still dangerous and more work remains" to be done.

But he praised the work of American and Iraqi forces in achieving "results few of us could have imagined just one year ago", and assured Americans that al-Qaeda "will be defeated".

He urged Congress to "meet its responsibilities to these brave men and women by fully funding our troops".

Mr Bush said that as a result of progress in Iraq and a transition of operations to Iraqi forces, more than 20,000 troops would be returning to the US in the coming months.

Mr Bush said 20,000 troops would be withdrawn in the coming months

In the official Democratic reply to the president's speech, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius said: "In this time, normally reserved for the partisan response, I hope to offer you something more: an American response.

"There is a chance, Mr President, in the next 357 days, to get real results and give the American people renewed optimism that their challenges are the top priority."

But the leading Democratic presidential candidates, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, took much tougher lines.

Mr Obama said Mr Bush's speech was full of empty rhetoric, and criticised his "failed politics and policies of the past".

Mrs Clinton said Mr Bush had only offered "more of the same: a frustrating commitment to the same failed policies".

The two rival Democrats have been fighting a bitter campaign for the candidacy, and although they sat only metres away from each other in Senate for the address, they did not speak.

At one point, Mrs Clinton reached across to shake the hand of Senator Edward Kennedy, who hours earlier had endorsed Mr Obama.

As she did so, Mr Obama turned his back.

Republican candidate Senator John McCain stayed in Florida ahead of his party's primary in the state on Tuesday.

Lame duck?

The State of the Union address is expected to be Mr Bush's last before he leaves office in January 2009, although he does have the right to deliver one more immediately before he goes.

According to Gallup polls of approval ratings around the time of the State of the Union addresses, this is the worst year for Mr Bush since his presidency began.

The BBC's James Coomarasamy in Washington says Mr Bush's speech was overall more businesslike than inspirational, perhaps more reflective of a more realistic president - aware that some of his policy goals would now remain elusive but determined that others would not.

Pressure increases on PKK rebels

Turkey, Iraq and the US have all taken steps to combat the threat of Kurdish fighters based in northern Iraq and defuse the crisis in the region.

The Turkish government has announced economic sanctions against groups which support those responsible for a recent upsurge in attacks on Turkish soldiers.

The move came after Baghdad announced more checkpoints to curb the activities of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The US also said it was giving Turkey intelligence on PKK positions in Iraq.

Washington has urged the Turkish government to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis on its south-eastern border, where it has deployed thousands of troops and threatened to invade.

'Precautions'

Following a cabinet meeting on Wednesday evening, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Cicek said his government had initiated "military, political diplomatic measures" to combat the PKK.

"The targets of these measures are the terrorist organization and those groups which are supporting, aiding and abetting it," he said.

Mr Cicek gave no details of the economic measures, but correspondents say they may result in a boycott of the autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, which Ankara says is failing to rein in the activities of the PKK.

The territory receives food imports from Turkey, as well as investment and electricity supplies.

Mr Cicek said Turkey would avoid making innocent people suffer hardship as a result of the "precautions".

Earlier, the US Department of Defence said it had stepped up supplying Ankara with "actionable intelligence" on the positions of PKK fighters in northern Iraq.

THE PKK Formed in late 1970s Launched armed struggle in 1984 Dropped independence demands in 1990s Wants greater autonomy for Turkey's Kurds Leader Abdullah Ocalan arrested in 1999 Ended five-year ceasefire in 2004 Called a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the EU and US

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said the US had given Turkey "intelligence with regards to this situation for a long time".

"We are assisting the Turks in their efforts to combat the PKK by supplying them with intelligence, lots of intelligence," he added.

"The key for any sort of military response from the Turks or anyone else is having actionable intelligence and that's a pretty high standard, and we are making efforts to help them get actionable intelligence."

No details were given of how the information is collected but reports suggest American-manned U2 spy planes have been flying over the Turkish-Iraqi border.

Last week, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said his country and Turkey needed better intelligence about the location of PKK fighters in northern Iraq before launching any military strikes.

Border tensions

The Iraqi government says that it too is acting against the PKK.

Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari - a Kurd - said checkpoints along the border with Turkey were being set up to cut off the PKK's supply lines.

He added that he had not given up hope of a peaceful solution to the problems.

Mr Zebari's comments came after he met his Iranian counterpart, Manouchehr Mottaki, for talks in advance of a conference about Iraq on Saturday in Istanbul.

The meeting, bringing together Iraq's neighbours with major international powers and institutions, is aimed at bolstering the country's security and stability.

Afterwards, both men stressed that the border tensions in northern Iraq should not be allowed to dominate the conference.

But the tensions clearly loomed large in the talks.

The two men agreed that the activities of the PKK against Turkey, and those of another Kurdish group, Pejak, against Iran, had to be curbed.

Iraq suicide bomber kills dozens

At least 27 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack on a police headquarters in the Iraqi city of Baquba, north of Baghdad, police say.

At least 20 people were hurt. Most victims were police recruits.

Correspondents say the attack bears the hallmarks of militants al-Qaeda in Iraq, who often target recruits.

Baquba is the capital of Diyala province, where some local tribes have recently joined US and Iraqi forces to fight the group.

On Sunday, nine tribal leaders from Diyala province were kidnapped while returning from Baghdad.

Violence levels falling

Police said the bomber arrived at the scene of the attack on a bicycle dressed in civilian clothes concealing a suicide belt.

He blew himself up as recruits waited to begin the day's training session.

Baquba's chief of police was killed in a suicide attack last month.

The September attack happened in a mosque compound during reconciliation talks between Sunni and Shia groups.

But the Jim Muir in Baghdad says levels of violence have generally been falling since a US troop surge began in February.

The US was set to hand over the mainly Shia central province of Karbala to Iraqi control on Monday.

It will be the eighth of 18 provinces to be transferred to local control since the US-led invasion in 2003.

US threat over Iraq embassy staff

The US state department has said it may have to force some diplomats to work in Iraq to fill vacancies at the embassy in Baghdad.

About 250 foreign service staff are to be told they are "prime candidates" for nearly 50 jobs, state department human resources director Harry Thomas said.

If too few people volunteer, some will be ordered to go and risk dismissal if they refuse, Mr Thomas said.

Iraq postings have previously been filled on a voluntary basis.

Vietnam precedent

Mr Thomas said he hoped enough diplomats would volunteer to fill the one-year postings but that "we have many options, including dismissal from the foreign service".

The "prime candidates" will be informed by post on Monday and have 10 days to reply.

To sweeten the deal, an attractive financial package is being offered as well as a generous leave allowance.

The Baghdad embassy is considered a hardship posting by US diplomats because of the security risks and because spouses and children must be left at home.

American diplomats have been forced to work in undesirable postings before.

Some were given no choice but to take postings in some African countries in the 1970s and 1980s and in 1969 an entire class of new foreign service officers was sent to Vietnam.

US reins in Iraq security firms

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has ordered new measures to improve government oversight of private security contractors used in Iraq.

It follows a review by an independent panel ordered after an incident last month involving the US firm Blackwater, in which some 17 Iraqi civilians died.

The steps include tightening the state department's rules of engagement so they are line with the military's.

Contractors will also have to undergo improved cultural awareness training.

There will also be better co-ordination with the US military and tighter restrictions on the use of force.

Boards will be set up to investigate any future killings involving private contractors in Iraq, and will have to power to refer cases to the US justice department.

Contractors will also have to have Arabic speakers on hand.

'Strained relations'

Ms Rice, who was briefed on the report on Monday "has decided to move ahead with the recommendations that are within her purview to act on immediately", state department official Patrick Kennedy said.

Mr Kennedy, who led the review panel, said its recommendations would clarify the rules of engagement for private contractors.

The panel has emphasised that they should open fire only with "due regard for the safety of innocent bystanders".

However, its recommendations focus on management and policy relating to security contractors rather than any possible wrongdoing by Blackwater or others, Mr Kennedy told reporters.

"Prompt measures should be taken to strengthen the co-ordination, oversight and accountability aspects of the state department's security practices in Iraq in order to reduce the likelihood that future incidents will occur," the report said.

'Strained relations

State department spokesman Sean McCormack said earlier that some of the review panel's recommendations would require co-ordination with the Pentagon.

Ms Rice is expected to meet Defence Secretary Robert Gates later this week to discuss those changes.

Earlier this month, Ms Rice ordered that a member of the state department's own security staff accompany all Blackwater-escorted diplomatic convoys and that video cameras be installed in the firm's security vehicles.

The Blackwater incident in Baghdad strained relations with Iraq and forced the state department to act, the BBC's Jonathan Beale in Washington says.

An Iraqi government investigation concluded that Blackwater guards fired on civilians without provocation.

Iraqi leaders have that demanded the US government end its association with Blackwater in Iraq within six months and hand over the contractors involved in the 16 September incident.

Blackwater's chairman, Erik Prince, has insisted he has proof that the firm's guards were fired upon and has defended its record before the US Congress.

US officials have released few details of the incident, as it is subject to an investigation by the FBI.

Turkish diplomatic push over PKK

Turkey has said it will exhaust all diplomatic solutions before sending troops into Iraq to stop cross-border attacks by Kurdish PKK fighters.

Foreign Minister Ali Babacan made the announcement as he prepared to travel to Baghdad for talks with senior Iraqis, including PM Nouri Maliki.

The US has again urged Iraq to take swift action against the insurgents to forestall the threatened Turkish raids.

Turkey's UN envoy has warned that his country's patience has its limits.

The PKK has reportedly claimed to have captured several Turkish troops following an attack on Sunday that left 12 soldiers dead. The Turkish military has only confirmed that eight soldiers are still missing.

There has been expectation in Iraq that the PKK will shortly announce a ceasefire, but previous truces have not been acknowledged by Turkey.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is meeting his UK counterpart, Gordon Brown, in London on Tuesday for scheduled talks.

'What other option?'

Mr Babacan has been on a tour of the Middle East to set out Ankara's position.

THE PKK Formed in late 1970s Launched armed struggle in 1984 Dropped independence demands in 1990s Wants greater autonomy for Turkey's Kurds Leader Abdullah Ocalan arrested in 1999 Ended five-year ceasefire in 2004

"Our preference is diplomacy but the military option is no doubt a method in the struggle against terrorism," he said in Ankara on Monday night.

Turkey's envoy to the UN, Baki Ilkin, told the BBC that Turkish patience would not last for ever.

"Iraq has to do something," he said on the World Tonight programme on Radio Four.

"...We have incursions into Turkish territory. We cannot get our hands on them, because they immediately go back to northern Iraq...

"If we can't put our hands on these... terrorists while they are in Turkey, what option do we have?"

Speaking at an Oxford University debate on Monday night, Prime Minister Erdogan reportedly said cross-border military action might be taken "in the next few days" in the absence of "expected developments".

Co-operation pledge

Speaking via a secure video link between the White House and Baghdad on Monday, Mr Maliki agreed with Mr Bush to "work together, in co-operation with the Turkish government, to prevent the PKK from using any part of Iraqi territory to plan or carry out terrorist attacks", a White House statement said.

HAVE YOUR SAY Turkey should join the coalition and handle the security in Northern Iraq Jeff Fogltance, Ontario, United States

"We want the Iraqi government to take swift action to stop the activity of the PKK," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said afterwards.

"We do not want to see wider military action on the northern border."

Mr Bush also spoke to Turkish President Abdullah Gul, telling him of his "deep concern" at recent PKK attacks.

Earlier, the office of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, said the PKK would offer a truce shortly.

Sunday's deadly PKK ambush near the Iraqi border has inflamed public opinion in Turkey, with the media and opposition leaders calling for immediate strikes against the rebels.

Last week, the Turkish parliament approved raids into Iraq and up to 100,000 soldiers, backed by tanks, fighter jets and helicopters, have been deployed along the border.

PKK sources reported heavy Turkish shelling of rebel positions after Sunday's ambush but there were no reports of an incursion.

Turkey seeks green light on Iraq

Turkey seeks green light on Iraq MPs in Turkey are due to debate a motion authorising cross-border military operations into northern Iraq to target Kurdish rebel bases there.

Parliament in Ankara is expected to approve the motion by a large majority amid widespread public support for military action against the PKK.

Attacks blamed on the rebels have been escalating inside Turkey in a conflict which dates back more than two decades.

But the US is anxious that Turkish action could destabilise northern Iraq.

It is also embroiled in a row with Turkey over a Congressional vote to recognise the mass killing of Armenians in Ottoman times as genocide.

Turkey is a regional hub for the US military, and some suggest access to Incirlik airbase or other supply lines crucial to US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan could be affected by the row.

Public pressure

The motion says that Turkey has warned Iraq repeatedly to clamp down on the PKK to no avail so now a military option is on the table.

The recent death of 13 Turkish soldiers in an ambush blamed on the PKK has put the government under immense pressure to respond with force, the BBC's Sarah Rainsford reports from Ankara.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the motion does not mean a military operation is imminent.

But he also warned that Turkey would act decisively in its fight against terrorism.

Iraq and America are urging restraint out of concern that military action by Turkey will bring chaos to the only relatively calm region of Iraq, our correspondent notes.

What Ankara wants is concrete action from them against the PKK to prevent that, she adds.

Iraqi concerns

Iraqi Vice-President Tareq Hashemi, who has been sent to Ankara for talks, said his government understood Turkish anger but wanted to achieve a "common understanding".

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh warned that unilateral action by Turkey in Iraq could have "very grave consequences".

"If Turkey as a neighbour of Iraq allows itself the right to intervene militarily in Iraq, what is there to prevent other neighbours from intervening?" he asked in the BBC interview.

Jamal Abdallah, a spokesman for the Kurdish regional government in northern Iraq, told there was no co-operation with the PKK.

"We have not helped the PKK and we are not helping it," he said.

The head of the UN refugee agency has said he is deeply concerned that Turkish action could lead to big displacements of people.

Antonio Guterres said the "relatively stable" area had until now acted as a haven for Iraqis displaced from other parts of the country.

Iraq strike 'kills 15 civilians'

The US military says 19 suspected insurgents and 15 women and children have been killed in an operation north of Baghdad.

The air and ground assault was targeted at senior leaders of al-Qaeda in Iraq, in the Lake Tharthar region, it said.

An initial air raid killed four insurgents and more air strikes were launched to back up US ground troops, a statement said.

A further 15 insurgents were found dead along with six women and nine children.

'Small-arms fire'

The US military said the first air strike was launched after intelligence reports suggested senior members of al-Qaeda in Iraq were meeting in the Lake Tharthar area, 120km (75 miles) north of the capital.

The coalition said that after the first air raid suspects were observed fleeing to an area south of the lake.

Ground forces attacked a building in which insurgents were believed to be hiding and were engaged by small-arms fire, the statement said. Further air strikes were then called in.

After securing the area, the troops found 15 dead suspected insurgents along with 15 dead civilians.

Two suspected militants, one woman and three children were wounded and another suspect was detained, the statement said.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has in the past expressed frustration with his allies over US military action resulting in civilian deaths.

Maj Brad Leighton, a Multi-National Force-Iraq spokesman, said: "We regret that civilians are hurt or killed while coalition forces search to rid Iraq of terrorism.

"These terrorists chose to deliberately place innocent Iraqi women and children in danger by their actions and presence."

Lake Tharthar was the location for one of executed former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's grandest residences, the so-called Green Palace.

Iraq provinces 'limit refugees'

The UN refugee agency has said the options for Iraqis fleeing violence are being narrowed by an increasing number of provinces refusing them entry.

The head of the UNHCR Iraq Support Unit told the BBC up to 11 governors were restricting access because they lacked resources to look after the refugees.

Andrew Harper warned that, with no imminent end to the displacement, Iraq was becoming a "pressure cooker".

The UNHCR recently said more than 2.2m Iraqis had become internally displaced.

It estimates a further 2.2m have fled to neighbouring states, particularly Syria and Jordan, since the US-led invasion in 2003.

'Pressure cooker'

In an interview with the BBC, Mr Harper said Iraqi authorities had been overwhelmed by the scope of the internal refugee problem and did not have the resources to cope.

The possibility for Iraqis to find safety and find is becoming increasingly restricted Andrew Harper UNHCR Iraq Support Unit

He said the governors of up to 11 provinces - out of 18 in the country - had reacted to the crisis by blocking internal migrants from entering their territory, or denying them food and education if they do get in.

"We are seeing an increasing number of governorates closing their borders or restricting entry to new arrivals," he said.

"And so we have a pressure cooker building up inside Iraq - there is no imminent end to the displacement," he added.

"The possibility for Iraqis to find safety and find is becoming increasingly restricted. So, where they can move is becoming over-populated and intense."

WHERE IRAQIS HAVE FLED TO Syria: 1,400,000 Jordan: 750,000 Gulf states: 200,000 Egypt: 100,000 Iran: 54,000 Lebanon: 40,000 Turkey: 10,000 Internally displaced: 2,250,000 Source: UNHCR

Mr Harper said the UNHCR had raised the problem with the Iraqi central government in Baghdad, but it was told that local authorities had been urged not to turn away Iraqis fleeing other parts of the country.

The 4.4m Iraqi refugees fleeing the violence and turmoil in the country, Mr Harper said, were the biggest challenge facing the UNHCR and the international community at the moment.

He said the figures were increasing on average by up to 100,000 every month.

In Diyala province, local aid workers have said they have been unable to reach thousands of families, including displaced refugees, because of the serious security situation.

Mr Harper's warning comes at a time when Iraq's neighbours have more or less closed their borders to Iraqi refugees, saying they can no longer cope with the strain on their resources.

Blackwater 'killed 17', says Iraq

The Iraqi government says a shooting in Baghdad last month involving the US security firm, Blackwater, killed more people than previously thought.

Originally it was said that 11 Iraqis had died but the government now says Blackwater guards killed 17 people.

Iraqi investigators also said that the Blackwater men did not come under fire.

Blackwater has not responded to the latest allegations, but has disputed previous accusations that its staff were the first to open fire.

But an Iraqi government spokesman said that the actions of the Blackwater employees amounted to deliberate killing.

"The investigation committee appointed by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki... has found that there was no evidence that the convoy of Blackwater came under fire directly or indirectly," spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said on Sunday.

"It was not hit even by a stone," he added.

BLACKWATER USA FACTS Founded in 1997 by a former US Navy Seal Headquarters in North Carolina One of at least 28 private security companies in Iraq Employs 744 US citizens, 231 third-country nationals, and 12 Iraqis to protect US state department in Iraq Provided protection for former CPA head Paul Bremer Four employees killed by mob in Falluja in March 2004

Mr al-Dabbagh said that the Iraqi cabinet would look at the investigative committee's recommendations and "take legal steps to hold the company to account."

The report concludes that those involved should face trial.

The committee found that 23 people had been wounded in the 16 September shooting, when Blackwater employees opened fire on civilians at al-Nisoor square in Baghdad.

Blackwater's founder Erik Prince has insisted his firm's personnel acted in self-defence after insurgents attacked the US diplomatic convoy they were protecting.

Blackwater is the main firm employed by the state department to provide security for its staff and visiting officials and businessmen.

The US state department has handed its inquiry into the shooting over to the FBI.

Nine Iraqi civilians killed in Baghdad bombings

BAGHDAD: At least nine Iraqi civilians were killed in bombings across Baghdad early Sunday, according to police.

About 7 a.m., three people were killed and four others were wounded when a roadside bomb targeting police patrols exploded near a minibus, according to a police official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The incident took place in the neighborhood of Baladiyat in eastern Baghdad.

A half-hour later, in the neighborhood of Dora in southern Baghdad, a second roadside bomb targeting a U.S. patrol missed its target and killed three Iraqi civilians and wounded three others, police said.

And in the downtown commercial neighborhood of Salihiyah, a bomb planted in the back of the car parked near the Iranian embassy exploded about 8:30 a.m., killing three Iraqi civilians and wounding three others, according to police.

US to review Iraq security firms

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has ordered a review of the way private security firms operate in Iraq and the oversight given by the US military.

The move follows an incident earlier this month involving US security firm Blackwater, in which 11 Iraqis died.

The Iraqi government reacted by briefly suspending the firm, and drafting new laws regulating private security.

A Pentagon spokesman said Mr Gates had "real concerns" and wanted to ensure contractors worked within US rules.

About 7,000 private security contractors work for the Pentagon in Iraq.

The US state department also employs three separate security firms to protect diplomats and important sites within Iraq.

'Means and resources'

Addressing the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, Mr Gates said that his concern was "whether there has been sufficient accountability and oversight" of contractors.

He said the Pentagon had sufficient legal authority to oversee private security firms but that the issue was whether commanders on the ground had sufficient "means and resources" to exercise those powers.

The defence secretary was giving testimony to Congress as he requested $190bn (£94bn) in funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2008.

Mr Gates on Sunday sent a five-person fact-finding team to Iraq to examine the issue of private security contractors more closely.

A US-Iraqi panel is already investigating the shooting, which provoked widespread anger in Iraq and prompted the Iraqi government to order a temporary halt to Blackwater's operations in the country.

Blackwater USA has said its guards reacted lawfully to an attack on a US diplomatic convoy.

The BBC's Jonathan Beale in Washington says that while the incident involving Blackwater is at the centre of inquiries, the intervention of Mr Gates suggests that concerns may go much further.

'Clear rules'

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Mr Gates had already begun asking questions about private contractors in Iraq and the answers relating to oversight had "not been satisfactory".

"He is looking for ways to make sure we... do a better job on that front," he told reporters.

Mr Gates' deputy, Gordon England, has issued a memo to US commanders, warning them they that are responsible for overseeing contractors.

The Pentagon wants to ensure "that the means we have to enforce contracts or enforce the rules are abundantly clear to commanders", he said.

The memo is also intended to make sure the military has the resources in place "to make sure they hold people accountable for any misdeeds", he added.

The contractors are currently granted immunity from prosecution under Iraqi law by Order 17 of the Coalition Provisional Authority - the now-defunct interim body set up by the US-led coalition in the wake of the fall of Saddam Hussein.

The agreement was extended shortly before the CPA was disbanded in June 2004.

US troops' Iraq leave bid blocked

Senate Republicans have blocked a bid by Democrats to give US troops in Iraq more home leave - a plan strongly opposed by the Bush administration.

The Democrats wanted US troops to have time off between tours in Iraq equal to their 15-month deployments.

The measure needed 60 votes to pass in the Democratic controlled Senate but received only 56 votes with 44 against.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates called it a backdoor attempt to pull troops off the battlefield.

He warned that he would have recommended US President George W Bush veto the measure had it passed.

The BBC's Rajesh Mirchandani in Washington said the bill had been the Democrats' best chance this year of changing the course of US strategy in the Iraq war.

'Pawns'

Republican Senators who were dubious over the president's policy are now giving him more time after an upbeat assessment last week of progress in Iraq by the top US commander in Iraq, Gen David Petraeus, our correspondent says.

Supporters of the bill, which was also narrowly defeated in July, said opponents were ignoring the troops' interests.

"In blocking this bipartisan bill, Republicans have once again demonstrated that they are more committed to protecting the president than protecting our troops," Senate Majority leader Harry Reid said.

Senator Chuck Hagel, one of six Republicans who backed the bill, said: "We cannot continue to look at war and the people who fight and die in wars as abstractions, as pawns, as objects."

But critics said it would have interfered with Mr Bush's plans to reduce US troop levels in Iraq by around 30,000 to about 130,000 by mid-2008.

'Slow bleed'

US troops currently have about 12 months rest at home between deployments.

Republican Senator John McCain, a presidential candidate next year, branded the bill "dangerous".

And fellow Republican Jim Bunning said of the Democrats' motion: "I will not support this slow bleed strategy in Iraq. It ties the hands of our commanders."

It was the latest defeat over the conflict for Democrats, who grabbed control of Congress last year.

They have at least two more proposals on Iraq to come, including explicit calls for combat troop withdrawals, but analysts say these are also likely to fail.

'Fair probe' vow on Iraq gunfight

Iraq and the US have pledged a "fair and transparent" investigation into a gunfight involving a private security firm that left eight civilians dead.

Iraq has banned North Carolina-based Blackwater USA from the country after the shoot-out in Baghdad on Sunday.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has telephoned Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki about the incident.

The two have agreed to investigate and hold any wrongdoers accountable, according to Mr Maliki's spokesman.

All Blackwater personnel have been told to leave Iraq immediately, with the exception of the men involved in the incident.

They will have to remain in the country and stand trial, the Iraqi interior ministry said.

The convoy carrying officials from the US State Department came under attack at about 1230 local time on Sunday as it passed through Nisoor Square in the predominantly Sunni neighbourhood of Mansour.

The Blackwater security guards "opened fire randomly at citizens" after mortars landed near their vehicles, killing eight people and wounding 13 others, interior ministry officials said.

Most of the dead and wounded were bystanders, the officials added. One of those killed was a policeman.

A spokesman for the US State Department told the AFP news agency that during her phone call to Mr Maliki, Ms Rice had "reiterated that the United States does everything it can to avoid such loss of life in contrast to the enemies of the Iraqi people who deliberately target civilians".

A Blackwater official was quoted as telling Time magazine's online edition that "the convoy was violently attacked by armed insurgents, not civilians, and our people did their job, they fired back to defend human life".

Thousands of private security guards are employed in Iraq.

They are often heavily armed, but critics say some lack proper training and are accountable only to their employers.

Blackwater is reported to have a contract worth $300m (£150m) with the state department to protect its diplomatic staff and equipment in Iraq.

The firm's personnel have no combat immunity under international law if they engage in hostilities.

Sunday's violence followed the publication of a survey of Iraqis by a UK-based polling agency that suggested up to 1.2m people might have died because of the conflict in Iraq.

Greenspan says Iraq war is ‘about oil’

WASHINGTON, Sept 17: Alan Greenspan — the former chief of the US central bank, for years an inscrutable seer on the economy — has outraged the Bush administration by alleging in his new memoir that “the Iraq war is largely about oil.”

Mr Greenspan, who as head of the Federal Reserve, was famous for his tight-lipped reserve, is uncharacteristically direct, also accusing President George Bush of abandoning Republican principles on the economy.

“I’m saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows — the Iraq war is largely about oil,” he wrote in reported excerpts of “The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World,” which hit bookstores on Monday.

However, in an interview with The Washington Post, Mr Greenspan clarified that while securing global oil supplies was “not the administration’s motive,” it had presented the White House with an opportunity to make the case that removing Saddam Hussein was important for the global economy.

“I was not saying that that’s the administration’s motive,” he said in the interview. “I’m just saying that if somebody asked me, ‘Are we fortunate in taking out Saddam?’ I would say it was essential.”

Mr Greenspan’s memoir appears 18 months after he left the Fed, following a career that spanned 1987 to 2006, with the US economy at a crossroads and ahead of a critical central bank meeting under the chairmanship of his successor, Ben Bernanke.

The man dubbed “The Oracle” tells his own tale of nearly two decades at the helm of one of the world’s most powerful financial institutions and includes surprising swipes at the Bush administration.

Defence Secretary Robert Gates, while explaining his “respect” for Greenspan, rejected the charge that a thirst for crude explained the decision to invade Iraq in March 2003.“I know the same allegation was made about the Gulf War in 1991, and I just don’t believe it’s true,” he said on ABC television.

Members of the US Congress, who by a broad majority also voted to authorise the use of military force against Iraq, also dismissed Mr Greenspan’s assertion.“I don’t believe that 77 United States senators on a broad, bipartisan basis would have authorised the use of force... if it was only about oil,” Republican senator John Cornyn told CNN.ECONOMY: Greenspan, a lifelong Republican, writes that he advised the White House to veto some bills to curb “out-of-control” spending while the Republicans controlled Congress.According to The Wall Street Journal, he says that Bush’s failure to do so “was a major mistake.”

Republicans in Congress, he writes, “swapped principle for power. They ended up with neither. They deserved to lose” in the 2006 elections when the Democrats retook control of Congress, he adds.

A speech by the 81-year-old Greenspan is said to command more than 100,000 dollars, and he reportedly earned an 8.5-million-dollar advance from Penguin Press for the book.

In the bombshell memoir, he puts his own spin on the events surrounding the 1987 stock market crash, the bursting of the Internet bubble and the 2001 recession coinciding with the Sept 11 strikes.

US hints at bigger Iraq pullout

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has hinted at bigger cuts to troop numbers in Iraq than those approved by President George W Bush.

Mr Gates suggested the current level of more than 160,000 soldiers could be cut to about 100,000 by the end of 2008.

Mr Bush said on Thursday about 30,000 troops might return by next summer.

Mr Gates spoke as a White House report suggested Iraq's government has made little progress in meeting key military and political benchmarks set by the US.

Bush pledges Iraq troops reduction

WASHINGTON: President Bush says he will start pulling some U.S. troops out of Iraq this month because his decision to send reinforcements earlier this year has been a success.

The president said that 5,700 U.S. forces would be home by Christmas and that four brigades a total of at least 21,500 troops would return by July, along with an undetermined number of support forces. Now at its highest level of the war, the U.S. troop strength stands at 168,000.

"The principle guiding my decisions on troop levels in Iraq is: return on success,"

the president said, trying to summon the nation's resolve once again to help Iraq

"defeat those who threaten its future and also threaten ours."

The reductions announced by Bush represented only a slight hastening of the originally scheduled end of the troop increase that Bush announced in January. When the cutbacks are complete, about 132,000 U.S. forces will be in Iraq.

Bush said Iraqi leaders have asked for an enduring relationship with America.

"And we are ready to begin building that relationship in a way that protects our interests in the region and requires many fewer American troops."

Bush described the gradual withdrawals, and the U.S. forces still fighting in Iraq, as a compromise on which war supporters and opponents could agree.

"The way forward I have described tonight makes it possible, for the first time in years, for people who have been on opposite sides of this difficult debate to come together,"

Bush said.