United States forces said they have killed an estimated 11 Shia militants in a raid in the town of Kut, south-east Iraq. The raid was saide tohave targeted members of a Shia group which has broken away from the Mehdi Army militia loyal to radical cleric Moqtada Sadr.
Separately, the United States military said it had captured two militants suspected of involvement in a kidnapping in May. It said it believed one of the suspects used his home to hide three abducted American soldiers.
The United States Army said its troops were attacked in Kut by ” direct enemy fire” from assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades. The soldiers returned fire and called in air support, it said.
United States and Iraqi officials said violence has dropped sharply in Baghdad and southern Iraq, partly thanks to Sadr’s declaration of a six-month ceasefire in August.