At least 77 killed in Najaf fighting in 24 hours

At least 77 Iraqis were killed and 70 wounded in Najaf in the past 24 hours during clashes between militants loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and US-backed Iraqi forces, Iraq's Health Ministry announced Friday.

The Ministry said six of those killed in Najaf were police who died in a mortar attack.