About 20 police in starched white shirts and dark trousers directed traffic through the major Andalus Square intersection in the central Karrada neighborhood and were stopping cars to check if they were stolen.

"Only some have joined us, here in Karrarda and in some other parts of downtown. There is cooperation between us and the Americans," said duty officer Akeel Muhsen Al-Lami.

About 200 officers had spread out across the city on traffic duty, he said, but they were only seen at the Karrada intersection.

He said people were happy they were back on the job since drivers treating traffic rules as mere suggestions had created long traffic jams and prevented ambulances and other emergency services from reaching people in distress.

Lami also said one of their main priorities would be tracking down the many cars which were stolen in the aftermath of the war which brought down the regime of Saddam Hussein.

"We don't think about payment," he said when asked about who was paying ther salaries, although the city's traffic police were notorious for extorting bribes.

SPACE.WIRE