Military: Recent Massacres In Baghdad Not A Trend

The U.S. military said on Sunday that it does not think that a recent wave of deadly attacks in Baghdad reflects an overall increase in violence.

U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, the military spokesman, said that a wave of horrific incidents, including a single attack on March 6 that killed 68 people in Baghdad, had to placed in perspective.

You have to "look historically at what happened in the last year to put in perspective what has happened in one week or two weeks in Baghdad," Smith said.

Violence around Iraq has dropped by about 60% in the past year, due mostly to an influx of thousands of U.S. troops, a cease-fire called by Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and a decision by tens of thousands of Sunnis to join forces with the United States.

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