U.S. soldiers kill 11 civilians and burn their homes
BAGHDAD, .—U.S. forces and insurgents were involved in intense fighting in Al Anbar province, 35 kilometers northwest of Baghdad during which witnesses say three U.S. helicopters were brought down, EFE reports.
According to the sources, after the helicopters were downed close to the Al Karma zone, combat aircraft heavily bombarded the insurgency areas and one of them – an F-16 – was also downed by rebel fire, killing its pilot.
According to Reuters, a local journalist who filmed the remains of the aircraft after it came down north of Fallujah in the western province of Al Anbar, stated that there was no doubt that the pilot was dead.
Residents of Garma said that the site of the accident had been surrounded by U.S. troops.
In addition, police and witnesses said that U.S. soldiers fired on 11 civilians and wounded another five on Sunday night in Husseiniya, a suburb located 20 kilometers northeast of Baghdad, AP reported.
An EFE cable refers to a mortar attack by unknown persons that caused an enormous fire in some crude oilfields in Kirkuk, an Iraqi city rich in the hydrocarbon.