US forces clashed with militia loyal to radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr overnight around a mosque and a court house in Kufa, just 10 km northeast of Najaf, Qatar-based al-Jazeera satellite channel reported Saturday.

One person was killed and 12 others were wounded in the clashes which lasted about three hours, doctor Muhammad Abd al-Kadhim at Kufa hospital told al-Jazeera.

The militia fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the court house which was used as a US post, accusing US forces of trying to storm the mosque, the report said.

Sadr's militia have been locked in fierce fighting with US and Iraqi forces in Najaf and some other holy cities, during which hundreds of Iraqis were reportedly killed and thousands wounded with some casualties from the US-led multinational forces

Source: Xinhua