PROGRESS

The U.S. military reopened a major bridge linking north and south Baghdad on Saturday, saying it was an important sign that the city was getting back to normal after the war that toppled president Saddam Hussein.

The July 14 Bridge spanning the Tigris river had been closed since U.S.-led forces deposed Saddam in April. Its reopening is expected to ease traffic congestion on Baghdad's gridlocked streets.

The U.S. military had kept the bridge closed for repairs but also cited security concerns -- it runs close to the U.S.-led authority's headquarters in Saddam's former palace.

''This is further evidence of a city returning to normal,'' Brigadier General Martin Dempsey, commander of the U.S. Army's 1st Armoured Division, said at a ceremony in the centre of the bridge.