British soldier killed in al-Basra, American planes bombard the surrounding of al-Sader house in Najaf
American planes bombarded the surrounding of the Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sader in al-Ishtiraki quarters in al-Najaf city. Violent clashes took place between the soldiers of the American troops ( Marines) and al-Mahdi army forces of al-Sader, following the air bombardment. The fighting concentrated near al-Sader's house.
These confrontations took place with the arrival of the advisor for the Iraqi national security Muwaffaq al-Rubei to Najaf in a mediation mission between al-Mahdi army and the Interim government.
This visit came after the American forces maintained control on the downtown of the city and prevented access to the Haidari "courtyard" and asked the people of Najaf to leave it. Thousands of people started to leave the city.
Sabah Khadem, the spokesman for the Iraqi ministry of the interior, said that there were strong instructions that the Iraqi forces will alone enter the holy sites.
In this context, the Lebanese Shiite clergy Ayatullah al-Ozma al-Sayed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah warned against what he called the grave results of invading Najaf city. He called in a statement issued by his office for getting the occupation forces out of Iraq by all means.
The battles which are taking place in most cities of southern Iraq, according to the statement of the Iraqi ministry of health, resulted in killing 165 persons and wounding other 600.
Iraqi security sources said that most of the casualties took place when American planes bombarded a quarters controlled by al-Mahdi army in al-Kout. Fire flared and set ablaze in several areas and properties targeted by the bombardment.
As an escalation for the security conditions in al-Najaf, the second deputy for the board chairman of al-Najaf governor, Jawdat Kazem al-Qureishi, resigned from his post in protest of what he described as "terrorist acts practices by the occupation forces in the city."
In this regard, demonstrations took the streets in al-Kazemeyah quarters in Baghdad and in Basra deploring the attack carried out by the American forces against Najaf.
In Basra, the British army which controls the city, situated to the south of Iraq, announced that one British soldier was killed and another injured when a home- made mortar went off in their patrol yesterday.
In Falluja, medical sources in the city hospital said that four Iraqis were killed and other 6 injured because of the Bombardment of the American fighters of three houses in al-Shuhadaa quarters to the south of the city.