Iraqi forces resilient in Sadr City

BAGHDAD, June 6 (UPI) -- The Iraqi military confiscated weapons caches in Baghdad's Sadr City and incorporated Sunni paramilitary forces into watch groups, the U.S. military said.

Iraqi forces entered Sadr City following a May truce with Shiite militias operating in the area. The move corresponded with a recruitment drive to bring the Sunni paramilitary force Sons of Iraq into armed watch groups in the city, the official newspaper of the U.S. military, Stars and Stripes, said Friday.

The new Neighborhood Guard receives training from the U.S. and Iraqi militaries on general policing tactics during a three-day course.

"This is what's going to get the Iraqi army out of the cities and eventually turn (them) over to police," said U.S. Army military transition specialist Maj. Philip Halliburton.

U.S. military officials cautioned, however, that the Sons of Iraq are a temporary security solution.

Meanwhile, the newspaper said, the Iraqi army in one day recently confiscated enough material from Shiite militias to manufacture over 100 roadside bombs.