Heavy fighting erupts in holy city of Najaf

Gunfire and explosions were heard in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf on Thursday and US helicopters were seen flying over the area, eyewitnesses said.

It was not known if the renewed clashes were triggered by any occasional attacks or result of a planned operation to disband radical Shiite militias.

The some 2,000 US troops have been cautious about entering the southern city, fearing a major fighting could damage the holy shrines in the city and might provoke further resentment among the majority Shiites.

However, sporadic clashes often inflicted casualties both on the US-led coalition forces and the militiamen loyal to the firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.

Source: Xinhua