PROGRESS.

Anti-American violence in the city of Fallujah, where U.S. soldiers faced dozens of attacks in May and June, has come to a virtual halt, the commander of U.S. forces there said Friday.

Maj. Gen. Buford C. Blount III, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, told reporters at his Baghdad headquarters that the drop in attacks has enabled him to reduce troops in Fallujah by 50 percent.

He declined to provide exact troop levels, but said as an example of the cutbacks the number at 24-hour guard posts in the city has dropped from 300 to 150. He also has withdrawn half the soldiers in the city's police headquarters.

Third Infantry soldiers moved into Fallujah in early June, after units from the 82nd Airborne, followed by the 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment, faced a series of attacks.

Blount said the number of attacks on his soldiers there has fallen from 20-25 a week about two months ago to zero this week.