Iraqis protest deteriorating security situation

[ck4829]

Thousands of people took to the streets Saturday in Basra, protesting deteriorating security in the southern city where Iraqi forces assumed responsibility for safety last December.

It was day of violence as well as political unrest in Iraq: Police in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad reported two separate bombings in which six people were killed, and officers also found 13 bullet-ridden bodies.

In Basra, Iraq's second-largest city and the urban center of an oil-rich region, Shiite groups have been wrestling for control.

Residents are becoming increasingly alarmed, saying that killings, kidnappings and other crimes have increased significantly since British forces turned over responsibility for Basra at the end of last year.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080308/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq