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BAGHDAD — This year's U.S. troop buildup has succeeded in bringing violence in Baghdad down from peak levels, but the death toll from sectarian attacks around the country is running nearly double the pace from a year ago.

Some of the recent bloodshed appears to be the result of militant fighters drifting into parts of northern Iraq, where they have fled after U.S.-led offensives. Baghdad, however, still accounts for slightly more than half of all war-related killings — the same percentage as a year ago, according to figures compiled by The Associated Press.

The tallies and trends offer a sobering snapshot after an additional 30,000 U.S. troops began campaigns in February to regain control of the Baghdad area.

It also highlights one of the major themes expected in next month's Iraq progress report to Congress: some military headway, but extremist factions are far from broken. In street-level terms, it means life for average Iraqis appears to be even more perilous and unpredictable.

The AP tracking includes Iraqi civilians, government officials, police and security forces killed in attacks such as gunfights and bombings, which are frequently blamed on Sunni suicide strikes. It also includes execution-style killings — largely the work of Shiite death squads.

Iraq banned motorcycles, bicycles and horse-drawn carriages from the streets of Baghdad indefinitely on Saturday in advance of a major Shiite religious ceremony, the military said.

Earlier in the day, state television announced a ban on all vehicles in the Baghdad area.

But military spokesman Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Mousawi later issued a clarification, saying cars would be allowed but other forms of transport that could slip into smaller places were banned until further notice.

He said the precaution was taken because of "intelligence information" that such modes of transport may be used in an attack.

News of the ban came hours after a car bomb killed seven people and wounded dozens near Baghdad's most important Shiite shrine.

Sunni extremists have staged attacks in the past during Shiite festivals, which have drawn huge crowds since the 2003 ouster of Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated regime.

It was the second vehicle restriction in Baghdad this month in connection with Shiite rituals.

The latest ban was ordered to protect Shiite pilgrims traveling to Karbala, 50 miles south of Baghdad, to attend ceremonies marking the birthday of the "Hidden Imam," a ninth-century religious figure who devout Shiites believe will return to Earth to usher in the rule of peace.

The festival reaches its high point Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

In a series of pre-dawn raids Saturday targeting al-Qaida in Iraq, U.S. forces killed three insurgent suspects and captured 17 others, officials said.