Rising Iraqi violence forces U.S. to increase Baghdad patrols

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- U.S. troops have stepped up patrols in Baghdad by45 percent since the spike in sectarian violence, a U.S. general saidThursday, raising questions about the capabilities of Iraqi forces. Acar bomb killed least 15 people in a Shiite area of the capital.

At least 21 other people, including an American soldier and sevenmembers of a Sunni family, were killed Thursday.

With sectarian violence on the rise in Baghdad, the U.S. commandboosted the number of armed patrols in the capital from 12,000 inFebruary to 20,000 since the beginning of March, …