Iraqi PM says handover near in some cities: 'First step' would be to move foreign troops out of quietest cities, he says

MSNBC.com via AP, Updated: 12:31 p.m. ET July 12, 2005

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraq’s prime minister said Tuesday that U.S. and other foreign troops could begin handing over security to Iraqis in selected cities, although he opposes setting a timetable for the complete withdrawal of multinational forces.
Underscoring security concerns, a car bomb killed at least three people and wounded 15 Tuesday in the ethnically tense northern oil city of Kirkuk, police said. An American soldier died of injuries suffered in a land mine explosion south of the capital, the U.S. command said.
Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari spoke to reporters alongside Deputy U.S. Secretary of State Robert Zoellick, who arrived Tuesday from Jordan, where he and Iraqi officials signed four economic agreements.