Four Iraqi civilians killed in clashes between rebels, US marines: hospital

KARMA, Iraq (AFP) Jun 08, 2004
Four Iraqi civilians were killed and 10 more wounded, including two children, in clashes between US marines and insurgents Tuesday in Karma, near the hotspot city of Fallujah, hospital sources said.

"Fighting broke at around 12:30 pm (0830 GMT) as the insurgents opened fire at the US forces near the police station," resident Mohammed Sleiman told AFP.

"The Americans then called over loudspeaker for residents to stay away from the clashes and to hand over the terrorists," the witness said.

The marines denied knowledge of the clashes, but said that a mortar fired by insurgents had hit a house in Karma, causing civilian casualties.

Fallujah, a Sunni Muslim bastion, was rocked in April by the heaviest fighting in Iraq since the US-led invasion last year, but has been relatively calm since US troops handed over patrols to Iraqi police and the newly-formed Fallujah Brigade, an ad-hoc force of army veterans.

WAR.WIRE