80 Iraqis killed by American forces in one day, a fire at a main oil pipeline in Iraq
The number of persons killed in the American attack against what was described as a training camp for Iraqi resistance men situated in Rao town in the downtown of Iraq increased to 80 persons.
News reports from the area said that the "scene is horrible," noting that citizens denied that the killed persons who were bombarded by some 20 American helicopters to be members of "Fedayeen Saddam" or "citizens from the area," but did not rule out for them to be Arab volunteers.
The reports said that human remains and copies of the Koran were seen scattered in the place where the citizens preoccupied by trying to bury the killing. Eye witnesses said they say the American forces transported remains on one or more helicopters from the site.
The number of killings in the line of the Americans were not known in the operation which lasted for 48 hours, at a time when citizens talked about field execution operations against many who were at the site. Many bodies were seen strangled.
The American forces announced the killing of 10 persons in what it considered a training camp for fighters from Fedayeen Saddam, which is a military establishment founded under the rule of the toppled Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. American planes and helicopters attacked a place situated to the north east of Bould town before air- borne forces mopped up the area.
An American statement said that during this operation which was named the "Peninsula," they found 70-80 land-to-air SAM missiles and 75- 78 shells and scores of AK 47 machine-guns.
In another site near Bould town where tension prevails, 27 Iraqis were killed by the occupation soldiers. A statement said that all of those Iraqis were trying to attack an American tank patrol.
Meantime, hundreds of Muslim Sunnis demonstrated yesterday in protest of the American forces breaking into Abu Hanifa al-Nu'man mosque in the city. Estimates said that more than 1500 persons took part in the demonstration after Friday's prayer.
The demonstrators which was led by three Imams of the largest mosques in Baghdad raised banners saying "do not violate the dignity of the mosques," "the mosques are holy places, do not make them dirty by your impure legs."
Meanwhile, American sources said that one American soldier was gravely wounded in a clash with gunmen in Musil city to the north of Iraq yesterday.
The attacks expanded to cover oil transportation lines from Iraq to Turkey. Unidentified persons set fire in the main pipeline to export oil from Karkouk fields in northern Iraq to the Turkish Jeihan port.
Eye witnesses said they saw two separate fires in the pipelines, 15 Km from Beji refinery which is close to the highway linking Baghdad and Musil.
It is believed that the attackers used explosives to blow up parts of the pipelines in Makhul area, 200 Km north of Baghdad. However, American engineers alleged that the fire was a result of gas leakage.