U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said Friday that Iraqi officials have agreed to negotiate an extension of U.S. forces there beyond the scheduled withdrawal date at the end of this year. Roughly 46,000 U.S. troops remain in Iraq, along with more than 64,000 private contractors. Last week, Iraq suffered its bloodiest day of the year, with more than a dozen coordinated attacks, leaving 89 people dead and more than 300 injured.