Two top al-Qaida leaders in Iraq have recently been killed in a joint operation in north of Baghdad by U.S. troops and Iraqi security forces, but questions remain on whether this will greatly improve Iraq's fragile security.

A paper displays photographs of a man the Iraqi government claims to be al-Qaida leader Abu Omar al-Baghdadi at a news conference in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, April 19, 2010. [Xinhua]

"A cell from our intelligence killed Abu Omer al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al-Musri during operation in Tharthar area in north of Baghdad," incumbent Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told reporters in a televised news conference Monday.

Baghdadi is the head of the self-style Islamic State of Iraq, which is an al-Qaida-led umbrella organization of extremist Sunni militants groups. Musri, also known as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir, is the top leader of al-Qaida in Iraq network, who replaced the former Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, when Zarqawi was killed in a U.S. airstrike on June 7, 2006.

Big victory for Iraqi security forces

Considering a string of deadly bombing attacks against government buildings and foreign embassies from last year by the two men, some local analysts believe it was a big victory for the country's security forces, who was blamed for failing to protect civilians against terrorists.

"I believe the killing of Abu Omer al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al- Musri is a big victory for the Iraqi security forces, which will positively improve the security situation and stability throughout the country," said Sabah al-Sheikh, a political professor in Baghdad University.

"The strike is painful for the al-Qaida group, which will negatively affect the morale of al-Qaida elements. Some will escape and others will no longer work for them," Sheikh told Xinhua.

Meanwhile, he said the operation will also greatly encourage the Iraqi security forces, "people will cooperate more with security forces to get rid of the violence from which they have suffered a lot in the past years," he added.