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An Iraqi bunker explodes during fierce fighting with US soldiers. US Central Command confirmed that 27 Iraqis were killed during fierce clashes in Balad, northeast of Baghdad.

Campaign Vs. Saddam Loyalists in Day 4

DULUIYAH, Iraq - A massive U.S. campaign to crush resistance by supporters of the ousted Saddam Hussein regime entered its fourth day Friday with U.S. officials saying a large number of Iraqi fighters had been killed.

Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers said U.S. forces were sifting through intelligence that "foreign fighters" may have been at an alleged terrorist training camp northwest of Baghdad targeted by U.S. forces.

If true, it would be the first indication that volunteers from other Arab countries were still in Iraq since the war was declared effectively over on May 1. Before the war in March, Iraq claimed that thousands of Arab fighters poured into the country to resist the invasion. They provided some of the stiffest resistance once American forces entered Baghdad.

Six U.S. soldiers have been wounded in the past 24 hours in fighting in all of Iraq, said Capt. John Morgan, spokesman in Baghdad for the Army's V Corps.

U.S. Forces Kill 27 Iraqis in Clash

BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. forces killed 27 Iraqi fighters in a ground and air pursuit Friday after the Iraqis attacked an American tank patrol north of Baghdad, the military said.

U.S. Central Command said an "organized group" ambushed the tanks in Balad, about 35 miles from the capital on the main highway north. The statement made no mention of U.S. casualties.

The patrol returned fire and killed four of the assailants in the initial gunbattle, the military said.

When the rest of the attackers fled, Apache helicopters joined the chase along with tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles, killing 23 more assailants. The statement did not say whether any escaped.

The attack was the latest in increasing resistance to the American-led occupation of Iraq since the war was declared over on May 1.

Since then, about 40 Americans have been killed in ambushes and by sniper fire, mainly in the central area of Iraq where ousted President Saddam Hussein drew most of his support.