US forces kill 46 attackers in Iraq

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, December 01, 2003

US forces kill 46 attackers in Iraq

US forces repelled two attacks in northern Iraq on Sunday afternoon, killing 46 attackers, wounding 18 and capturing eight, a US spokesman said.

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US forces repelled two attacks in northern Iraq on Sunday afternoon, killing 46 attackers, wounding 18 and capturing eight, a US spokesman said.

Many of the dead bodies were found wearing uniforms of Saddam Hussein's Fedayeen militia, an elite armed force established by the ousted Iraqi leader, Lt. Col. William MacDonald from the 4th Infantry Division told reporters in Saddam's hometown of Tikrit.

The simultaneous ambushes on two US military convoys occurred in Samarra, a city 100 km north of Baghdad, one in the eastern side and the other in western side, he said.

Five soldiers and a civilian traveling with one of the convoy were injured, said the spokesman, adding that none of the wounded suffered fatal injuries.

"This is the largest one for our task force since we've been inthe area," he noted.

The "coordinated" attacks were conducted with improvised bombs,mortars, rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns.

In one of the ambushes, the attackers set up a makeshift barricade trying to block the way of one logistic convoy before they opened fire from rooftops and alleyways, said MacDonald.

"The barricade was immediately breached," he added.

In the firefight, US forces took numerous locations and fired small arms and cannons, destroying three buildings and causing "significant enemy losses."

"It does send a clear message that if you attempt to attack oneof our convoys, we're going to use our firepower to stop that attack," stressed the colonel.

Samarra, located by the main supply route in the central northern area dubbed as the Sunni Triangle, has witnessed numerousbomb attacks and ambushes on convoys.

Two South Korean civilian contractors were killed and two were seriously wounded in an attack between Samarra and Tikrit on Sunday.

Two Japanese diplomats and a Colombian contractor were also killed by unknown gunmen in the same general area on Saturday, further indicating the insecurity in the war-torn country.

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