U.S. military commanders on Tuesday handed over to their Iraqi counterparts primary security responsibility for a swath of northern territory extending from the foothills of Iraq’s eastern mountains all the way west to the Syrian border. Visiting U.S. and Iraqi officials hailed the transfer — which will have no immediate effect on American troop levels in the area — as a watershed moment in the gradual shift of military duties in Iraq from U.S. forces to this country’s nascent army. Full Story