Number of Iran-linked bombs in Iraq lower

WASHINGTON, July 18 (UPI) -- The number of detonated and unexploded roadside bombs in Iraq the U.S. government has linked to Iran dropped during the last quarter, the U.S. military said.

The nearly 70 percent decline came when the Iraqi military conducted operations against Shiite militia strongholds, USA Today reported Friday.

However, U.S. commanders expressed caution in describing the decline in armor-piercing bombs in Iraq, saying there is no evidence Tehran retreated from its support for Iraqi Shiite militants.

"There are a number of rockets and mortars that we know are of Iranian descent that we have taken off the battlefield," Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the second-ranking U.S. commander in Iraq, told USA Today. "It's hard to determine whether that's been the principal cause of seeing fewer attacks or there's been some other cause."

The United States also is working diplomatically to try to curtail Iranian influence in the region, the newspaper reported. A top U.S. diplomat will attend a meeting with Iranian officials during the weekend to discuss Tehran's nuclear program. The United States also is considering re-establishing a diplomatic presence in Iran for the first time in nearly 30 years.