U.N. report generally positive on Iraq

BAGHDAD, March 17 (UPI) -- The U.N. mission in Iraq said security in areas outside the Iraqi capital remains tenuous but expressed cautious optimism about the security in Baghdad.

The twelfth report from the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq credited the five-brigade U.S. troop surge, the cease-fire by Moqtada Sadr's Mahdi Army and the grassroots security force Sons of Iraq with a significant decrease in violent attacks in Baghdad.

The UNAMI report cautioned, however, that the ability to perpetuate the calm "remained unclear, with the security situation still precarious in many parts of the country."

The report singled out the activity of militant groups in areas such as Mosul in the northern province of Ninawa and areas in the eastern Diyala province as areas of concern.

The deliberate targeting of the civilian population by Sunni and Shiite armed groups was "tantamount to crimes against humanity and violate the laws of war," the report said.

The United Nations also noted the violence in Iraq resulted in more than 4.4 million displace Iraqis worldwide. The chief of the Iraqi mission, Staffan de Mistura, recently toured several nearby states, such as Jordan and Syria, praising their efforts to help displaced Iraqis, and the U.S. State Department recently pledged more than $125 million in assistance.

Despite recent laws concerning detainee affairs in the Iraqi Parliament and pledges from U.S.-led forces handling legal decisions to facilitate the rule of law, the United Nations criticized the general failure to "meet basic fair trial standards."

The report, however, praised the decision by the Iraqi government to sign on to the U.N. Convention Against Torture as a move to impose a "greater degree of transparency."