The third of five U.S. extra brigades sent to Iraq last year to help curb spiralling sectarian violence is returning home, the U.S. military said. The redeployment of about 3,500 soldiers from the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division in the next several weeks, is part of a wider plan to withdraw the five "surge brigades", or 20,000 troops, by the end of July. U.S. President George W. Bush last month suspended further troop withdrawals from July, imposing a 45-day freeze on the remaining 140,000 troops to assess the security situation before considering more cuts. TomDispatch: Endless War.