What is the correct number of foreign jihadis in Iraq? Frankly, we’ll never know and estimates have been anywhere from a few hundred upwards to 10,000 strong. One thing is certain though, due to recent changes in the defense of Iraq there are far fewer foreign jihadis entering Iraq to prey on a vulnerable populace.

“We are killing them,” a senior Pentagon official said yesterday, when asked about shrinking foreign-fighter numbers in Iraq.

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“It appears there has been a downturn, and that is partly due to increased security along the border with Syria,” said a U.S. counterintelligence official, who asked not to be named. “Syria was the primary entry point for most of those foreign fighters. Stepped-up efforts to stem the flow is having an impact.”

But a smaller pool of suicide bombers has forced the foreign fighters’ main leader, Abu Musab Zarqawi, to recruit iraqis, and some are enlisting, the counterterrorism official said. (source)

What effect might this have in Iraq? One effect is a tigher security and hopefully less offensives in certain areas of Iraq, namely Ramadi and Western Iraq.

While the Pentagon will not give death count numbers, it has always been the case that many of these jihadis die when they actually stand and fight. Of course that is not the prefered method of launching terrorist attacks.

In a recent briefing, Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch said coalition troops have killed more than 100 members of al Qaeda in Iraq in recent months.

Zarqawi “still has capabilities, including recruiting suicide bombers,” Gen. Lynch said. “The forces will continue their operations and fight their way to the elections to deny him these capabilities.”

Lt. Gen. John Vines, the U.S. tactical commander in Iraq, declined to provide a “body count,” but said a series of counterinsurgency sweeps are taking a toll on the enemy.

“What we do see indicators of are the numbers of foreign fighters that are showing up in a variety of venues, and we believe those numbers are significantly less, perhaps is less than half as many as they were in the summer,” Gen. Vines said. “We see evidence that we’re making considerable progress in that regard.”

A U.S. intelligence official said, “A lot of these people should not be called foreign fighters. They should be called ‘foreign ordnances’ because they blow themselves up. They don’t fight.”

This is yet another sign of progress in Iraq. Iraqi soldiers are in great enough numbers to virtually close off the border between Iraq and Syria, the same border which Al Qaida in Iraq openly calls on prospective jihadis to cross to enter the fray.