Posted on 01/28/2007 11:06:07 AM PST by cgk
Edited on 01/28/2007 11:44:41 AM PST by Sidebar Moderator. [history]
| U.S., Iraqi forces kill 250 militants in Najaf Sun Jan 28, 2007 2:16 PM ET
NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. and Iraqi forces killed 250 gunmen in a fierce battle involving U.S. tanks and helicopters on the outskirts of the Shi'ite holy city of Najaf on Sunday, a senior Iraqi police officer said. The day-long battle was continuing after nightfall, Colonel Ali Nomas told Reuters, as tens of thousands of pilgrims converged on the nearby city of Kerbala for the climax of the Ashura commemorations. A U.S. helicopter was shot down in the fighting, Iraq security sources said. The U.S. military declined comment. A Reuters reporter saw a helicopter come down trailing smoke. Shi'ite political sources said the gunmen appeared to be both Sunni Arabs and Shi'ites loyal to a cleric called Ahmed Hassani. In Baghdad, 13 people were killed in bombings in mainly Shi'ite areas, police said. Twin car bombs targeting ethnic Kurds killed 16 people as night fell in the northern oil city of Kirkuk, whose population is a volatile mix of Kurds, Turkmen and Sunni and Shi'ite Arabs. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims have converged on Iraq's other main Shi'ite holy city, Kerbala, for Ashura, marking the 7th century Battle of Kerbala, which helped consolidate the schism between Shi'ite and Sunni Islam. It ends on Monday. It is the first time the 10-day annual ritual has been held since violence erupted last February between Iraq's majority Shi'ites and once-dominant minority Sunnis. Tens of thousands have since been killed in tit-for-tat killings. The governor of Najaf province said Iraqi troops fought a day-long battle with up to 200 Sunni gunmen, including foreign fighters, holed up in orchards on the northern outskirts of the city, seat of Iraq's most powerful Shi'ite clerics. Governor Asaad Abu Gilel told Reuters the authorities had uncovered a plot to kill some of the clerics on Monday, to coincide with the climax of Ashura. "There is a conspiracy to kill the clergy on the 10th day of Muharram," Najaf governor Abu Gilel said, referring to the day of the Muslim calendar on Monday. A Reuters reporter about 1.5 km (1 mile) from the fighting said he heard intense gunfire and saw U.S. helicopters rocket groves sheltering militants. He saw smoke trailing from one helicopter before it came down in the midst of the fighting. He was unable to see what had happened to the helicopter, but officers in Iraq's 8th Army Division and policemen said it had crashed and that the two crew members were dead. The U.S. military said it did not comment on operations still taking place. (Additional reporting by Aseel Kami, Sherko Raouf in Sulaimaniya) |
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(Wonder why Reuters printed this good news?)
Wow. He was a prolific little troll, wasn't he?
Wow, I feel so honored to have you sign up just moments ago to address me, twice. Keep yapping a bit more and enjoy your brief stay here on FR.
Amen.....Dear St Michael and St George, hear our prayers.
It means welcome to FR, things slow over at du?
I just talked to a troll that became a ghost. I'll give you the same advice:
Head to the trolley bus station right outside the FR door!
See ya!
I think you're seeing that same ghost in a different body.
Is that you Michael?
Like April of 2003 or so.
Hi OWF,
They had no choice after postponing it as long as possible and concentrating on our losses.
God Bless our troops.
I have a cold otherwise I would have smelled him!
It's either him or Captain Jamil Hussein's brother.
"What the hell is an alleged religious fanatic?"
I don't know but Ithought we stopped with
"The Holy City Of____(fill in the blank__)" along time ago. Total BS.
There are no "Holy" cities in IRAQ. Them days are over.
Sorry about your cold and hope it gets better. He'll be back in a different form.
God bless our troops, indeed. They are fighting more than one, and they are all evil.
Are you saying that the civilian deaths are our fault then?
This is the Al Mahdi followers (terrorists) website and they have a breaking news about the burning and destruction of a mosque in Najaf by the local Iraqi forces. They have posted a link to a detailed communique from Al Mahdi Army regarding to what appended in Najaf today
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