Rice pays surprise visit to Baghdad for talks on reining in militia violence

Rice pays surprise visit to Baghdad for talks on reining in militia violence

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Baghdad on Thursday on a surprise visit in which she was expected to meet with the prime minister for talks on reining in militias behind Iraq's sectarian violence.

U.S. spokesman Lou Fintor said Rice arrived by helicopter Thursday afternoon.

Rice, who has been on a tour of the Middle East this week, was to meet with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the talks were expected to focus on his efforts against militias behind the bloody wave of Shiite-Sunni killings this year, an official in al-Maliki's office said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the press, reports AP.