American forces killed an estimated 26 people during fierce fighting in Baghdad's Sadr City early on Saturday in one of the bloodiest clashes in the Shi'ite slum since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.
The U.S. military said in a statement that American forces staged two separate raids into Sadr City targeting militants suspected of close ties to "Iranian terror networks" and who were responsible for bringing Iranian weapons into Iraq. According to to Reuters, the statement said American forces faced "significant" resistance during the pre-dawn raids, including roadside bomb attacks as well as fire from rocket-propelled grenades and light weapons.
There were no U.S. casualties, the statement added.
Residents said U.S. attack helicopters fired missiles at targets in the slum of located in northeastern Baghdad. The military said armoured vehicles fired on four cars. Residents said the fighting lasted six hours. A witness said nine civilians were wounded. Other residents said several cars were burned and they insisted all the people killed in the clashes were civilians.
