US says all extra troops now in Iraq

All US troop reinforcements heading to Iraq have now arrived, but it could take several more months before their weight is fully felt, the US military said today.

The United States has sent around 28,000 extra troops to Iraq for a fresh security push, begun in mid-February, aimed at curbing sectarian killing and winning the government of Shia Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki time for political reform.

It will take 30 to 60 days for the new arrivals, who have taken total US troop levels in Iraq to 160,000, to win the confidence of residents and start getting the intelligence needed to counter insurgent and militant attacks, the military said.

The top US military commander in Iraq, Gen David Petraeus, and US ambassador Ryan Crocker are due to report on the level of success of the security build-up in September.

President Bush is under growing pressure from Congress to begin pulling troops out and end the unpopular war, which has killed more than 3,500 US soldiers since the US-led invasion in 2003.