According to the latest quarterly Pentagon report on Iraq released Tuesday, Security is deteriorating in southern Iraq as rival Shiite militias vying for power have stepped up their attacks after moving out of Baghdad to avoid U.S.-led military operations, reported The Washington Post on Tuesday.

According to this report ” Security is deteriorating in southern Iraq as rival Shiite militias vying for power have stepped up their attacks after moving out of Baghdad to avoid U.S.-led military operations.”

Iran has intensified its training and funding of the Shiite militia, and Iranian-influenced militias are believed to be responsible for killing the two governors, as well as for a nearly 40 percent increase in attacks using lethal weapons known as explosively formed projectiles, compared with the mid-February to mid-May period, the report said.

In Basra, the city through which 90 percent of Iraq’s oil is exported, the report said that the expected continued reduction of British forces had led to insurgent groups “posturing themselves to control the city, where violence has increased due to the presence of multiple Shi’a militias.