Iraq Security Plan Underway; Crash of Marine Copter Kills 7

Local Forces Leading Crackdown, U.S. General Says

BAGHDAD, Feb. 7 -- On the day the U.S. military announced that American and Iraqi forces had begun implementing their long-awaited security plan, a U.S. Marine transport helicopter crashed northwest of Baghdad, the fifth deadly loss of an American helicopter in Iraq in less than three weeks.

Military officials said all seven crew members and passengers were killed in the crash of the CH-46 Sea Knight on Wednesday in Anbar province. The cause remains under investigation, but officials said the aircraft was having mechanical problems before it went down. The four other helicopters in recent crashes were shot down, the military acknowledged this week.

The U.S. military's chief spokesman in Iraq said Wednesday that U.S. and Iraqi forces had begun a joint effort to secure Baghdad and troubled Anbar province.

"The plan is being fully implemented as we speak," Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell told reporters after being asked when the plan would start. "Not all aspects are in place at this point."

The plan is being led by Iraqi officials and is designed to stop violence in the capital's volatile neighborhoods, Caldwell said. Officials have established nine new security districts in Baghdad and are creating dozens of security stations that Iraqi police and military officers will share with U.S. military personnel.

"The key difference is, this time it's an Iraqi-led plan," Caldwell said. "Not only are they planning it, they are leading."

The announcement was something of a surprise, because officials had lately issued contradictory and vague messages about the scope and timing of the plan. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Tuesday urged his generals to move more quickly to get the plan off the ground.

"We will prove at the start of the Baghdad security plan that the Iraqi army and police can play an effective, courageous role," Maliki told the generals in a televised speech. "We will also disprove to the world that the Iraqi army relies on others and is not qualified to shoulder the responsibility."

Caldwell praised Maliki's leadership and what he described as the prime minister's commitment to keep political and sectarian differences from hindering the plan. Iraqi political leaders, many of whom draw some of their political strength from militias and insurgents, have in the past sought to influence military operations to protect militant groups loyal to them. Caldwell said that Maliki, who has been accused of protecting the Mahdi Army, a powerful Shiite Muslim militia, is urging his generals to resist such meddling.

"He doesn't want politicians calling and interfering with their mission," Caldwell said.

The rollout of the security plan comes as bombings and other acts of violence, much of it driven by sectarian fighting, continue in the capital.

"We are in a tough, tough situation," Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih said in an interview Wednesday. He said the full implementation of the plan will take time because it involves "the mobilization of a lot of resources and assets, and the hope is that it will lead to a noticeable change in the security in Baghdad."