IED attacks up in Afghanistan, down in Iraq

[unhappycamper]

IED attacks up in Afghanistan, down in Iraq
Wire reports
Posted : Thursday Nov 15, 2007 18:19:36 EST

BAGHDAD — Iran’s commitments to stem the flow of weapons and explosives into Iraq “appear to be holding up” and have contributed to a sharp drop in roadside bombs across the country, a U.S. general said Thursday.

Army Maj. Gen. James Simmons, a deputy corps commander, said that in October, U.S. forces logged 1,560 cases in which bombs were either found and exploded.

That compared with 3,239 incidents last March, he said. The October figure was the lowest since September 2005, he added.

Meanwhile, Taliban militants have staged more roadside bomb and suicide attacks in Afghanistan this year, raising concerns that the insurgents are gaining strength and countering U.S. and NATO tactics.

Through October, the number of improvised explosive devices, including car and suicide bombs, totaled 1,932, up from 1,739 for all last year, according to military statistics. There were 782 such attacks in 2005.

Barnett Rubin, an Afghan expert at New York University, said the greater use of bombs in Afghanistan shows the Taliban is gaining momentum. The militants have recently moved back into some areas of the country, particularly those where Afghanistan’s lucrative opium crop has grown.


Rest of article at: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/11/gns_ied_071115/