Overnight, thousands of protesters continued to defy the curfew and, as the night progressed, troops and armoured vehicles deployed across Cairo to guard key places such as train stations, major government buildings and banks.
He however expressed concern that the reduction could undermine the progress that troops have made against the Taliban.
"As both nations work to cement this great progress, our troops and assistance will continue to play a critical role...
In the map room itself we can read the huge maps covered with colored pins and long tracks of thin woolen thread, marking the progress of troops.
As the drawdown in Afghanistan progresses and troops return home, the Defense Department must cement a more defined and interactive ways to screen returning troops, making it more difficult to hide symptoms.
As the two largest contributors to the international mission in Afghanistan, we're proud of the progress our troops have made in dismantling al-Qaida, breaking the Taliban's momentum and training Afghan forces.
Yet business executives and economists said in interviews last week that while the progress of troops in Iraq was unquestionably good news for the economy, as one source of uncertainty recedes, it remains to be seen whether the battlefield success will prove to have been a turning point.
It was a reminder that for all the declarations of progress, the troops are leaving primarily because most Iraqis wanted them to go, despite the significant lingering concerns about the capabilities of the Iraqi security forces and the country's still-precarious political balance.
Authorities have reported steady progress as troops attempt to cut off Tikrit from the south, east and north.
While this move had been progressing, the troop of the 11th Squadron had been sent north from the crossing.
As the campaign progressed, the troops of the MEF would eventually be supported by about 2,000 civilian labourers from the Egyptian and Maltese Labour Corps.
