Region | Iraq
US airstrikes in Basra kill six Iraqi civilians, one militant
An airstrike destroyed a house in the southern city of Basra, killing a militant, the US military said on Thursday. Iraqi police said six civilians were among the dead.
- AP
- Published: 12:36 April 3, 2008
Baghdad An airstrike destroyed a house in the southern city of Basra, killing a militant, the US military said on Thursday. Iraqi police said six civilians were among the dead.
The attack comes as the Iraqi government apparently has shifted gears in its offensive against Shiite militias, staging more targeted raids instead of attacking the gunmen head-on after a week of fierce clashes that spread to Baghdad and other southern cities.
US-led coalition directed "aerial fires" against enemy forces fighting Iraqi troops on Wednesday near the militia stronghold of Qibla in Basra, according to a military spokesman.
No further details about whether US or British aircraft were used in the attack.
An Iraqi police officer in Basra said six civilians were killed and two wounded in an 8pm strike against a house in Qibla, a district that has seen some of the fiercest fighting in the offensive that began March 25.
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