"And more than half of the Iraqis under arms are police officers, instructed by professionals like New York City's outstanding former police chief, Bernard Kerik."
But all that has failed to stem the bloodshed so far.
Two Iraqis were killed in confrontations between Iraqi army veterans and coalition forces over back pay and a US soldier died in an attack overnight, as the occupation of Iraq approached the six-month mark.
The US military said two US soldiers were wounded in the exchange of fire in Baghdad between US troops and former Iraqi servicemen seeking overdue wages, while medical sources said an Iraqi was killed and two dozen were hurt.
In Basra, coalition forces shot dead an Iraqi during a similar demonstration, a British military spokesman and witnesses said.
US military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel George Krivo blamed the violence on Saddam loyalists, saying they had spread rumors that the former soldiers would not be paid.
The death toll among US forces rose further when a soldier from the 4th Infantry Division was killed and another wounded in a rocket-propelled grenade and small-arms attack in Baghdad, the military said.
The casualty brought to 90 the number of Americans killed in action in Iraq since May 1.
Meanwhile, Jordanian Information Minister Nabil al-Sharif denied yesterday reports that Iraqi weapons of mass destruction were moved to Jordan.
US chief weapons inspector David Kay said last week his team, hunting for the arms in Iraq, was investigating multiple reports from Iraqis that banned weapons or weapons-related substances were moved across borders into Iran, Syria and Jordan.
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