Accessibility links

Breaking News

Clashes Erupt In Southern Iraqi City


The Al-Mahdi militia has emerged as a potent force in southern Iraq (file photo) (epa) October 8, 2006 -- U.S. and Iraqi forces today clashed with armed gangs during a search operation in the town of Al-Diwaniyah, south of Baghdad.

Iraqi police and the U.S. military said approximately 30 suspected Shi'ite militiamen were killed in heavy clashes on October 7 that went on into today.

The U.S. military also said a state-of-the-art main battle tank was destroyed during the fighting.

Al-Diwaniyah was the scene of fierce clashes between the Imam Al-Mahdi Army, a militia loyal to Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and the Iraqi Army in August that resulted in dozens of casualties.

A senior officer in the Iraqi police internal affairs department was shot dead in the capital today.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military says one of its soldiers died in northwest Baghdad on October 7, when insurgents attacked his patrol with small-arms fire. It also announced that two more of its soldiers died in Iraq the same day.

More than 2,700 U.S. servicemen have died in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion.

(compiled from agency reports)

Iraq In Transition

Iraq In Transition

THE COMPLETE STORY: RFE/RL's complete coverage of events in Iraq and that country's ongoing transition.

RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.

If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.

To find out more, click here.

XS
SM
MD
LG