Better Every Day

U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Matheew Lundeen (left) and Maj. Mark Thompson, both pilots from the 817th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, Mildenhall Air Base, England, walk around their C-17 Globemaster III aircraft while it is parked on the flight line at Sather Air Base, Iraq, during a dust storm on April 17, 2008. The dust storm reduced visibility to 100 meters and stopped all air traffic from landing at Sather Air Base. (Tech. Sgt. Jeffrey Allen, U.S. Air Force)

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Scenes from Iraq

Over five years since it began, the war in Iraq continues, but with some recent notable progress. On Monday this week, American forces formally returned responsibility for the security of Anbar Province, at one time, the center of the Sunni insurgency, to the Iraqi Army and police force. Violence in the region has decreased dramatically - attacks down by 90% over the past two years. The continuing relative peace and order in the region remains a fragile scenario, with many former insurgents now acting as police, or as gunmen allied with American-backed "Awakening Councils". Here are some scenes from around Iraq (and a couple from here in the U.S.) over the past several months. (28 photos total)

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A hand touches a silver column in the Imam Hadrat al-Abbas Shrine on August 28, 2008, in the holy city of Karbala, visited every year by hundreds of thousands of Shiite worshipers. Iraqis have bought about 1,450 kilograms - $69 million dollars worth of silver from Swiss dealers to refurbish the shrine of this revered imam killed along with his brother Imam Hussein in the Battle of Karbala in the year 680 and buried in the city.

A baker cuts a traditional Arab sweet into small pieces with a tray of 'Shahriya', or bird nest pastry, in the foreground at a sweet bakery in Baghdad on September 3, 2008. Desserts are a main part of the the holy month of Ramadan sunset meals in Arab countries where observant Muslims are required to abstain from food, drink and sex from dawn to dusk. (SABAH ARAR/AFP/Getty Images) #

A resident walks in the water flowing from a giant fountain in Jadriya Lake park in Baghdad August 23, 2008. Jadriya Lake, a popular playground that has twice been shut by war and chaos, reopened on Friday to the delight of scores of Iraqis who splashed straight in, most of them teenage boys. (REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen) #