Ramadi, Iraq: An early pullout of US troops would spark a return of savage sectarian violence and be "disastrous" for Iraq, a tribal leader fighting Al-Qaeda in a province once fiercely anti-American told AFP.

Sheikh Ahmed Abu Reesha, leader of the "Anbar Awakening" that has ended much of Al-Qaeda's hold over western Iraq, warned that improvements in the security situation would be lost if the United States reduced its troop presence.

"Right now, any quick withdrawal will be disastrous because the Iraqi army is incapable of taking over," he said in an interview. "Any withdrawal must happen only when the Iraqi army is 100 per cent ready to protect the country. The government and the country cannot afford to be without help from the Americans".

Sheikh Ahmed took over as head of the Anbar Awakening in September after the murder of his celebrated brother Sheikh Abdul Sattar Abu Reesha, the pioneer of the groups that switched allegiance from Al-Qaeda to US forces.

The movement has been a prime factor behind a sharp drop in violence across Anbar, and especially in its capital Ramadi, which was reduced to ruins as US forces battled with Iraqi nationalists and tribes allied with Al-Qaeda.

Over the past year, attacks in Ramadi have dropped from 25-30 a day to fewer than one a week, and the numbers of roadside bombs have declined by 90 per cent, according to latest US military figures.

Sheikh Ahmed, speaking to AFP at his residence on yesterday, paid a heartfelt tribute to his brother, who was killed by a bomb planted only a few hundred metres from the grand reception building where Sheikh Ahmed receives visitors.

Source : PTI