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As Washington and Baghdad hammer out an agreement on the future of US troops in Iraq, Crispin Thorold meets some of the Sunni militiamen at the heart of the new security policy.

Adhamiyah was once at the heart of the Sunni insurgency but this area has been transformed in the past year. The US forces in this Baghdad district now spend most of their time patrolling rather than fighting.

'Sons of Iraq' militiamen at checkpoint in Baghdad
Sunni tribal militiamen have eased the burden of US troops

A major shift in security came when local tribesmen began policing the area. The Sons of Iraq - also known as the Tribal Awakening - once fought against the Americans but now they are challenging al-Qaeda.

In the heart of Adhamiyah is the Abu Hanifa mosque, one of the most important shrines for Sunni Muslims in Iraq.

Since the fall of Saddam Hussein it has also been the scene of several clashes between insurgents and US forces.

Now a tribal awakening group mans the nearby checkpoints. The group is heavily armed with an array of weapons.

One man has a pistol tucked into his belt. It is cocked, ready to fire in an instant.

As we speak to the group they appear nervous and constantly eye the nearby streets.

Despite a relative improvement in security, their caution is understandable.

"A suicide bomber came here last week," said a senior tribesman. "He was dressed as a woman. He killed my brother and his bodyguards".

Fifteen people died in the explosion, which is widely presumed to have been the work of Sunni insurgents sympathetic to al-Qaeda.

Integration challenge

In the immediate aftermath of the attack, US troops swept into the area to try and restore calm.

US soldiers say that as well as combating bombings they have to ease tensions between the ten different tribal awakening groups in Adhamiyah.


The people who are in charge of the area are thieves
Adhamiyah resident

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"Speaking to key leadership personalities and assessing them is critical to what happens inside Adhamiyah," said Lieutenant Eric Kuylman.

"It is a lot of people-management. We spend a lot of the day walking on the street to get a picture from the locals. We sit down with the key leaders and from there it is a question of co-ordinating them."

There are now more than 100,000 Sons of Iraq across the country, the vast majority of them Sunni. In the medium-term these tribesmen are supposed to be integrated into the Iraqi security forces but that process has been painfully slow.

According to a senior coalition source, only 5,189 have been transferred so far.

US soldiers in Adhamiyah, northern Baghdad
US forces in Adhamiyah spend more time patrolling than fighting

Most of the Sunnis we met in Adhamiyah blame this on the Shia-dominated central government. There is great suspicion of the administration led by Prime Minister Nouri Maliki.

There are also fears about what will happen when US troops withdraw.

"I think that the government will come after us and there will be chaos," said Tahir Abu Ayer.

The Adhamiyah security wall is a constant reminder of the recent chaos in Baghdad.

Some 4.8km (3 miles) long and 3.7m (12ft) high, this barrier was built by the American military in April 2007 to separate Adhamiyah from nearby Shia neighbourhoods.

"They don't come to hurt us and we don't go to their place," said one man. "All of them are from the [Shia militia] the Mehdi Army.

"They are dangerous. We don't go there and they don't come to us."

Little electricity

As we continue to drive through the heart of Adhamiyah an American sergeant points out the reconstruction that is being carried out.

"Back there, there was a wall that they had painted," he said.

"Over here on the left and right of the road you can see that it is pretty torn up. What they are trying to do is lay cables to try to get the infrastructure back."

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki
Many Sunnis regard Prime Minister Maliki with suspicion

However, there is still much work that remains to be done. Rubbish is piled up on the streets and sewage runs through the gutters.

There is a constant whir of generators - like so many other areas of Baghdad, Adhamiyah has little electricity.

Outside one shop, a group of men had gathered to complain about what they believe is a lack of interest from the central government.

"For the last three days we have not electricity in this area," said one man. "The people who are in charge of the area are thieves."

When we ask if the slow pace of reconstruction and the lack of services could lead to another round of violence the answer is a resounding yes.

As we return to the US base at Camp Apache, we pass through many more checkpoints, all of them manned by groups of fighters from the Sons of Iraq.

While these militias wait to be integrated into the Iraqi armed forces, Adhamiyah is being carved up into fiefdoms - something that could mean more violence once the Americans leave.