US soldiers clashed with rioters carrying Saddam Hussein's pictures Friday in a Baghdad suburb. Two civilians were killed, and hospital officials said 17 were wounded. Two soldiers also were wounded, the U.S. military said.
Iraqis said the clash at Abu Ghraib, a western suburb of the capital, started when American soldiers tried to clear market stalls from a main road. Youths threw stones at troops and Iraqi police, and set tires ablaze.
Elsewhere, a US soldier was killed in a bomb attack in western Iraq, the US military said. The attack took place near Khaldiya, 80 km west of Baghdad, said a military spokesman.
Also on Friday, The New York Times reported that U.S. commanders believe the ousted president is actively plotting some of the attacks against the US forces.
Starting around midnight Thursday, U.S. soldiers, Iraqi police and civil defense forces moved into Uja, a small village about 16 kilometers southeast of Tikrit where Saddam was born.
Soldiers stretched concertina wire around the perimeter of the village and established checkpoints. Residents over the age of 18 will be required to have registration cards to move in and out of the village, U.S. officers said, The AP reported.
"This is an effort to protect the majority of the population, the people who want to get on with their lives," said Lt. Col. Steve Russell, commander of the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment of the 4th Infantry Division.
Russell said he did not know whether Saddam was directing parts of the attacks, but the village is the family home of many former Baathist regime members. "There are ties leading to this village, to the funding and planning of attacks against U.S. soldiers," Russell said.
In Fallujah, west of Baghdad, a strong explosion on Friday shook the center of this city, and thick black smoke billowed from the mayor's office, witnesses said.
The blast was heard about 1:35 p.m., and Iraqi police blocked off the roads leading there. Later, residents angered by the police action broke into the smoldering building and looted the mayor's office. They dispersed when U.S. Humvees arrived with helicopters overhead.
Meanwhile, a roadside bomb exploded near a U.S. foot patrol on the outskirts of the northern city of Mosul and unidentified gunmen sprayed the city hall with automatic fire, officers said Friday. Nobody was injured in these incidents. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
