A member of Iraqi security forces checks cars at a checkpoint securing road to the Shiite enclave of Sadr City, Baghdad, Sunday, April 13, 2008. On Saturday Iraqi authorities lifted a two-week ban on vehicle movement in Baghdad's Sadr City. (AP PhotoKarim Kadim)

Pentagon (AP) A Pentagon audit has found that Iraq's government has kept thousands of dead, injured or absent policemen and soldiers on the payroll to assist their families.

The special inspector general who compiled the data says it's one reason it's so hard to get a fix on how many Iraqi forces are actually on the job.

Stuart Bowen had been asked to assess last month's Defense Department report on Iraq. It's one in a series of quarterly documents required by congress to measure progress toward military and political security there.

The 20 billion dollar program to train Iraqis to provide their own security is key to when american troops levels can be reduced in Iraq.