US forces kill 16 suspected Iraqi militants and detain 44 in raids

Baghdad: US and Iraqi forces killed 16 suspects and captured 44 others in raids across northern Iraq in the past 48 hours, the US military said on Friday.

In one operation on Thursday south of Samarra, two suspects were killed - including a man believed to be a leader of Al Qaida in Iraq's operations in Salah Al Deen province, the US military said in a statement. Salah Al Deen province is a predominantly Sunni area north of Baghdad, and home to many former Baathists and other associates of Saddam Hussain.

US ground troops fired warning shots, and then came under enemy fire, the statement said. They returned fire, igniting a vehicle believed to be carrying the Al Qaida leader. Secondary explosions erupted, indicating that the car had been filled with explosives, the military said.

Two bodies were recovered at the scene - the intended target and another man believed to be one of his associates, the statement said.

Also during the operation, a US helicopter made a "hard landing," the military said. US officials are investigating whether the incident was the result of hostile fire or other insurgent activity, it said.

The Samarra raid was one of several operations across northern Iraq in the past 48 hours.

West of Mosul, Iraqi soldiers found 130 blocks of TNT along with several rocket-propelled grenades, the US military said in another statement. Eight "suspected enemy fighters" were taken into custody across the Tigris River in eastern Mosul, it said.