Bloodshed as Kirkuk falls By Sam Kiley in northern Iraq 10 April 2003 I was caught up in a dramatic firefight today as the allied push through northern Iraq claimed the key oil town of Kirkuk. In a major advance for the coalition campaign, I accompanied US marines and Kurdish peshmerga forces as they reached positions on the very edge of the city and then thrust further into the centre. Groups of Kurdish fighters, including women, marched in to be met by crowds of celebrating locals. But the path to Kirkuk was perilous. In Laylan, our unit of Kurds and...