lah ad Din. These provinces account for about 40 percent
of Iraq's population of 26 million. In Baghdad, the violence is
largely between Sunni and Shia. In Anbar, the violence is attributable
to the Sunni insurgency and to al Qaeda, and the situation is
deteriorating.

In Kirkuk, the struggle is between Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmen. In Basra
and the south, the violence is largely an intra-Shia power struggle.
The most stable parts of the country are the three provinces of the
Kurdish north and parts of the Shia south. However, most of Iraq's
cities have a sectarian mix and are plagued by persistent violence.

U.S., Coalition, and Iraqi Forces

Confronting this violence are the Multi-National Forces-Iraq under
U.S. command, working in concert with Iraq's security forces. The
Multi-National Forces-Iraq were authorized by UN Security Council
Resolution 1546 in 2004, and the mandate was extended in November 2006
for another year.

Approximately 141,000 U.S. military personnel are serving in Iraq,
together with approximately 16,500 military personnel from twenty-seven
coalition partners, the largest contingent being 7,200 from the
United Kingdom. The U.S. Army has principal responsibility for Baghdad
and the north. The U.S. Marine Corps takes the lead in Anbar province.
The United Kingdom has responsibility in the southeast, chiefly in
Basra.

Along with this military presence, the United States is building its
largest embassy in Baghdad. The current U.S. embassy in Baghdad totals
about 1,000 U.S. government employees. There are roughly 5,000
civilian contractors in the country.

Currently, the U.S. military rarely engages in large-scale combat
operations. Instead, counterinsurgency efforts focus on a strategy of
"clear, hold, and build"--"clearing" areas of insurgents and death
squads, "holding" those areas with Iraqi security forces, and
"building" areas with quick-impact reconstruction projects.

Nearly every U.S. Army and Marine combat unit, and several National
Guard and Reserve units, have been to Iraq at least once. Many are on
their second or even third rotations; rotations are typically one year
for Army units, seven months for Marine units. Regular rotations, in
and out of Iraq or within the country, complicate brigade and
battalion efforts to get to know the local scene, earn the trust of
the population, and build a sense of cooperation.

Many military units are under significant strain. Because the har