The Hindu : International : Mehdi men take on U.S. troops in Najaf

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 06, 2004

International

International

Mehdi men take on U.S. troops in Najaf

BAGHDAD, AUG. 5. Insurgents loyal to the radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr fought fierce battles on Thursday with U.S. and Iraqi forces in the holy city of Najaf that quickly spread to other Shia areas. The violence in Najaf killed at least four people and wounded 29 others.

Mr. Al-Sadr's men also fought with U.S. troops in the Baghdad neighbourhood of Sadr City, attacked Iraqi officials in the southern city of Amarah and threatened to hit British forces further south in Basra.

The clashes were the worst flare-up in fighting between authorities and Mr. Al-Sadr's forces since a series of truces two months ago ended weeks of violence.

``The cease-fire is over because of the actions of the occupation forces, and the situation has started to deteriorate,'' said Sheik Abdul Hadi al-Daraji, a spokesman for Mr. Al-Sadr in Baghdad.

Suicide bombing

Also on Thursday, a suicide car bombing at a police station south of Baghdad killed five people and wounded 27 others, the Interior Ministry said.

Tension has been rising in recent days between Mr. Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and Iraqi and U.S. forces.

Police in Najaf accused Mr. Al-Sadr's militia of kidnapping 18 police officers there in hopes of using them as leverage to force authorities to free recently detained militants.

Early on Thursday, the Mahdi Army attacked a police station in Najaf with mortars, rocket-propelled grenades and gunfire. U.S. Marines later entered the area, residents said.

Marines intervened ``to help the policemen protect the police stations and the city,'' the Najaf Governor, Adnan al-Zurufi, said.

Helicopter crashes

During the battle, a UH-1 helicopter was hit and crashed, the military said. The crew was hurt and evacuated to safety.

The dome of the Imam Ali Shrine was slightly damaged in the fighting, witnesses said. Mr. Al-Sadr's followers announced over the mosque's loudspeakers that the dome was hit.

The intensely revered shrine, reputed to hold the remains of Imam Ali, the most hallowed saint in Shia Islam, was slightly damaged twice during fighting in May.

U.S. forces have been careful to avoid damage to shrines in Najaf and other holy cities for fear of enraging Iraq's Shia majority. Busloads of Mahdi Army militants were seen entering the city, residents said.

U.S. forces were stationed about 1 km from the mosque, while Mahdi Army fighters were taking their injured into the mosque compound, witnesses said.

Sunni spokesman freed

U.S. forces released the son and spokesman of the head of the main Sunni Muslim clerics' association, a member of the Committee of Muslim Scholars said today.

— AP

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