BAGHDAD, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Iraqi forces will step up their deployment on the streets of Baghdad this week as part of a U.S.-backed offensive against militants, Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Sunday. The crackdown, which U.S. officials said began last week, is seen as a final attempt to prevent an all-out sectarian war between Iraq's dominant Shi'ites and minority Sunni Arabs. While saying the offensive would accelerate at a gradual pace, Maliki said "very soon, this week, will witness a heavy deployment of the security forces from (the Iraqi) police and the army". U.S. President George W. Bush has promised to send 21,500 more American troops, mostly to Baghdad, to help with the plan. Thousands of Iraqi reinforcements have already arrived from other parts of the country. Some 85,000 U.S. and Iraqi soldiers will be available for the offensive when all reinforcements are in place. Both Bush and Maliki are under growing pressure from war- weary constituents to halt Iraq's descent into chaos. Shown on local television, Maliki said the increased deployment would take place across all of Baghdad's districts. "The plan aims at cleaning these areas and disarming (militants)," Maliki said. He said the crackdown was intended to make it safe for residents forced to flee their homes by sectarian attacks to return. Maliki, a Shi'ite Islamist, has vowed to tackle militants on both sides of the sectarian divide. He has been criticised in the past for failing to confront Shi'ite militias tied to parties within his government. Maliki said the security plan also aimed to revive the economy in Baghdad and boost government services that have been badly affected by violence.
