Iraqi lawmakers mixed on future

BAGHDAD, July 2 (UPI) -- Iraqi lawmakers have mixed opinions on the U.S. troop withdrawal, with some hailing the end to foreign occupation and others worried about renewed violence.

U.S. combat forces withdrew from Iraqi cities to their military bases Tuesday under the terms of a bilateral security agreement signed with Baghdad in 2008.

Iraqis were celebratory Tuesday, marking the occasion with a national holiday, though a suicide attack in Kirkuk the same day brought renewed concerns over the security situation.

Abbas al-Bayati, a Shiite lawmaker with the United Iraqi Alliance and member of the national defense committee, expressed cautious optimism over the milestone. He said Iraq needs a concerted and considerable effort to prevent terrorist and other insurgent groups from taking advantage of the situation, but praised national security forces for their resolve.

"The takeover of Baghdad, a day before the deadline, is the best evidence of the determination of security forces to accomplish a successful withdrawal," he told the Iraqi political Web site Niqash.

But Salim Abdullah, the spokesman for the Sunni Iraqi Accordance Front, expressed concerns over renewed attacks and the challenges facing the Iraqi national security force.

"The coming months will reveal the size and the capacities of the Iraqi security forces who are supposed to supervise the whole security file after the U.S. troops full withdrawal from Iraq in 2011," said Abdullah.

An Iraqi soldier died Thursday when his convoy passed a roadside bomb during operations in Baghdad.