China has investigated more than 6,660 government officials derelict of their duties for the past 19 months, said deputy Procurator-General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate Wang Zhenchuan Wednesday.

Wang said at a work conference that Chinese procuratorates at all levels have investigated more than 5,840 cases of duty dereliction involving 6,664 government officials since August 2005, including 218 officials of county and division-level or above.

But he did not disclose the number of government officials convicted of duty dereliction after being investigated.

The duty dereliction investigation has been focused on government officials and staff of justice department who have misused their power for private gains, and on officials who have neglected their duty causing major economic losses for the government.

"The investigation has helped maintain market order, secure judicial justice and regulate use of government power," Wang said.

He said that in 2007 the procuratorates will continue to focus on investigation of cases in which judicial justice is hampered and environment damaged due to official's dereliction of duty.

China investigated and charged a number of government officials for dereliction of duty over the past few years.

Source: Xinhuaqi government, saying she supported Iraq's decision to invite Iran and Syria also.

Washington's new position was considered by international media as a huge diplomatic turnabout since the Bush administration refused direct dialogue with Tehran over the Iraqi issue for several months.

The United States has persistently accused Iran of supporting Iraqi insurgents to fight with coalition forces since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, but Tehran has denied it by saying such allegations were deliberate intervention to the Iran- Iraq ties by the U.S.

Due to Iran's what Americans called "bad role" in the war-torn Iraq, a number of Iranians in Iraq have been arrested and the U.S. also increasingly started to build up its military power in the Gulf region.

Source: Xinhua