Pace: Waves of Change Hit Parts of Iraq

This photo provided by the Defense Department shows Army Gen. David Petraeus, commander, multi-national Forces in Iraq, left, greeting outgoing Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Peter Pace, Monday, July 16, 2007, at Baghdad International Airport in Baghdad, Iraq. Gen. Pace is visiting Iraq to met leadership, visit troops and to assess the operations in Iraq (AP Photo/Defense Department, Staff Sgt. D. Myles Cullen) (Staff Sgt. D Myles Cullen - AP)

Gaskin and Charlton accompanied Pace in a convoy of armored Humvees and a mine-resistant truck known as a Cougar that rumbled through quiet, nearly deserted streets, past piles of rubble, abandoned buildings and scenes of destruction that evoked images of recent heavy fighting that has virtually leveled some neighborhoods.

What changed things here, as U.S. commanders describe it, was a decision by local Sunni tribal leaders to turn against al-Qaida and to collaborate with U.S. forces to establish a local government.

Mayor Eyada greeted Pace inside his modest office and credited U.S. forces for bringing peace to his city.

Apologizing for not having lunch to offer on Pace's unscheduled visit, the mayor said locals are now volunteering to join the police force, which previously was intimidated by al-Qaida. And, he said, the community is beginning to believe that the changes could be lasting.

"It's a fact that people start to sense and see every day," he said through an interpreter. "To put it simply, people were jailed in their own homes," before al-Qaida was evicted. "Now it's totally different."

He did have one request of Pace: push the Iraqi central government to reimburse Ramadi residents for the damage to their homes and property from the fighting that raged until about March.

In an interview, Charlton said indications of the change in Ramadi include that it has not seen a roadside bomb attack in more than two months and attacks of all kinds are down to about one per day. As recently as February, when Charlton's brigade began operating in Ramadi, there were 157 roadside bomb attacks in the city and surrounding areas. In July 2006 there were 334.

"All these trends are still very, very positive," he said. "The level of violence has gone down and stayed down. Now, that doesn't mean that al-Qaida has given up.

Gaskin, in a separate interview, also expressed concern that the fight over Ramadi may not be over.

"We see all the time, based on intelligence intercepts, that al-Qaida would like to come back into the city of Ramadi," Gaskin said. "We have made it a point to be ready for them if they try."

Although Pace has said he plans to make another trip to Iraq before he retires Oct. 1, it was clear during his question-and-answer sessions with troops Tuesday that the end of a 40-year career is very much on his mind.

"It's been an incredible journey for me," he said after officiating at a re-enlistment ceremony for soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division in Baghdad. "I'm getting close to the end of my time."

Because of the sandstorm that blew in shortly after he arrived in Ramadi, Pace had to cancel plans to fly to Camp Speicher, near the north-central city of Tikrit, where he had planned to review the situation with Maj. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, who commands all of northern Iraq.