Iraq celebrates "National Sovereignty Day"

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Iraq has marked the event with an overnight display of fireworks, while thousands attended a party in a Baghdad park.

Fireworks light up the night sky above Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, June 29, 2009. U.S. troops will be out of Iraqi cities by tomorrow Tuesday June 30 in the first step toward winding down the American war effort by the end of 2011.(AP Photo/ Khalid Mohammed)

On Tuesday morning, patriotic songs could be heard coming from speakers throughout the city as police sirens also rang out.

The Iraqi government has named June the 30th "National Sovereignty Day," declaring it a public holiday. The departure of US troops from the country's cities marks the first major step towards withdrawing all American forces from Iraq by December the 31st, 2011. But the political situation remains unsettled. And all eyes will now be on a parliamentary poll in January that will test Prime Minister Maliki's government.