Clashes between U.S. troops and Shiite fighters loyal to Muqtada al-Sadr overnight in the holy city of Najaf left at least one person dead and 20 wounded, a hospital official said Monday.
The official, Fadhil Abbas, said the toll was likely to rise because ambulances had been dispatched to recover more casualties. According to The AP, he added that the hospital was waiting for relatives of four people killed in clashes on the previous night to come to identify the bodies, which had been decapitated.
Some of the overnight combat took place in the Revolution of 1920 Square and was so intense that the steel fence between the square and the adjacent cemetery was destroyed.
Elsewhere, at least 18 Iraqis were killed and 12 wounded in clashes in Baghdad's Sadr City district, AFP reported, citing hospital officials. (Albawaba.com)
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