BAGHDAD, Aug 4 (AFP) - Multinational troops have begun patrolling the porous Syrian border at the request of Iraq's caretaker government in a bid to stop insurgents from crossing into the country, the military said Wednesday.
"Multinational forces, at the request of the Iraqi interim government, began on Monday conducting border enforcement missions along Iraq's Syrian border to disrupt the movement of anti-Iraqi forces into the country," a statement said.
Multinational forces will provide training to Iraqi border police and conduct joint patrols with that unit and the Iraqi National Guard.
They will have the power to check documents and inspect vehicles, backed by the interior ministry and the department of border enforcement, in an effort to stop insurgents, money and weapons from crossing illegally into Iraq.
On an official visit to Syria late last month, Prime Minister Iyad Allawi announced that Iraq and Syria had set up a joint committee to oversee the security of their common border.
Damascus has repeatedly denied claims by the United States that Syria turns a blind eye when combattants cross the 600-kilometre (350-mile) border into Iraq, and that it backs insurgents fighting US-led forces there.