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| Rice makes surprise visit to Iraq | Rice makes surprise visit to Iraq |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has arrived in Iraq's capital, Baghdad, on a brief unannounced visit at the start of a six-day Mid-East tour. | |
| It comes as US and Iraqi forces pursue a major security operation there. | |
| Earlier, at least 10 people were killed by two car bombs in the centre of the northern city of Kirkuk. | Earlier, at least 10 people were killed by two car bombs in the centre of the northern city of Kirkuk. |
| At least 68 people were injured in the attack, police said. The blast also destroyed shops at the market, situated in a mainly Kurdish area of the city. | |
| Kirkuk is a centre of oil production and ethnically mixed, with tensions running high between different groups. | Kirkuk is a centre of oil production and ethnically mixed, with tensions running high between different groups. |
| Ms Rice is expected to meet senior US and Iraqi officials to discuss the progress of the new security plan. | |
| The success of the new crackdown will be measured largely on how well the US-backed Iraqi government capitalises on any respite of sectarian violence, the Associated Press news agency quotes her as saying. | |
| In Baghdad, the new security measures have coincided with a significant dip in attacks. | |
| This is rare good news for the US administration which is facing opposition at home to its strategy of sending more troops to Iraq, says the BBC's Jane Peel in Baghdad. |