According to the latest United Nations human rights report on Iraq, large-scale killings and targeted assassinations continue to impede efforts to bring lasting stability and security to Iraq.

Although Government officials declared a drop in the number of killings in late February after the Baghdad Security Plan was launched, the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) says the number of reported casualties rose again in March.

UNAMI also voiced concern regarding the handling of suspects arrested as part of the Plan. The new procedures "contained no explicit measures guaranteeing minimum due process rights." Rather, the report argues, "they authorized arrests without warrants and the interrogation of suspects without placing a time limit on how long they could be held in pre-trial detention."

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