US troubleshooter arrives in bid to stabilise Iraq

THE US administrator for Baghdad was to leave her post yesterday amid criticism over the slow pace of reconstruction, as Washington’s new top official for Iraq flew into the Gulf charged with rebuilding the country.

Officials said that Barbara Bodine, who was charged with running Baghdad and central Iraq, would be returning to the United States to take up a new job in Washington. No reason was given for the move.

The Washington Post also reported that Jay Garner, the retired US general who up until now has been the leading US civil administrator in Iraq, will return home with his aides in the next weeks.