39 'terrorists' killed in Iraq
2007-03-20 17:11
Baghdad - Iraqi security forces killed 39 "terrorists" in a fierce battle in the western Sunni province of Al-Anbar on Tuesday, said a top Iraqi official.
Brigadier general Abdel Karim Khalaf, director of the operations centre in the interior ministry, said seven other militants were arrested, including some Arab nationals.
The clashes broke out early on Tuesday in Ameriyah, southwest of the former rebel town of Fallujah and the site of a recent chlorine gas attack.
Khalaf said security forces supported by paramilitary units formed by Sunni tribes fought the militants in a battle that lasted several hours.
Two top militants, Shakir Hadi Jassim and Mohammed Khamis, were among the dead.
About 25 Sunni tribes from Anbar have formed an coalition - Anbar Awakening - to take on the militants, largely from the Al-Qaeda network, who are operating in the western province.
These tribes have been sending thousands of young men to join the government security forces or their paramilitary units to co-operate with US and Iraqi commanders to fight insurgents.
In response, the insurgents have launched attacks on them and modified their tactics to add gas bombs to their arsenal.
On Friday, bombers detonated three dirty bombs in Anbar province poisoning 350 civilians, six American soldiers and killing two policemen.