The situation in Iraq after five years of war is fragile and remains under threat from al Qaeda, possible meddling by Iran and unresolved political tensions, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said on Tuesday. Army General Ray Odierno said a series of elections next year, beginning with provincial elections on Jan. 31 and culminating in a general election at the end of the year, would be the test of whether Iraq can attain greater stability. "Right now things are going ok," Odierno told reporters in Baghdad. "But until some of these internal tensions can be resolved politically, and so long as there is al Qaeda and Shia extremists out there who try to exploit political fissures, there's still a potential for increased violence." The bloodshed between once dominant Sunni Arabs and now ascendant Shi'ite Arabs unleashed by the 2003 U.S.-led invasion has fallen sharply in recent months, but lethal bomb and gun attacks remain commonplace. The northern city of Mosul, which Odierno said was the last area where U.S. troops were conducting major military operations, remains plagued by al Qaeda and other insurgents. And political analysts say they fear tensions between the Shi'ite bloc of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and ethnic Kurds in the north, especially over the oil-rich disputed city of Kirkuk, could plunge Iraq back into violence. Odierno said he remained concerned about Iran's intentions in neighbouring Iraq.