Shiite Muslim militiamen clashed with Polish-led coalition troops in the holy city of Karbala on Friday, the latest skirmish between followers of a radical cleric and coalition forces in the south. One soldier was injured and taken to a military hospital for treatment, officials said.
| How many milita boys bought it? Polish forces had better keep the ratio at 20:1 or better, just so the milita hard boyz know there aren't any weak spots in the Coalition. |
Militiamen attacked a military convoy made up of Polish, Bulgarian, Lithuanian and Latvian soldiers near city hall in the center of Karbala around the time of weekly Muslim prayers, said Lt. Col. Robert Strzelecki, spokesman for Camp Babylon, the main Polish base. Gunmen and soldiers exchanged fire.
| Lithuanians, my grandparents on my dad's side. And working under Poles! |
Strzelecki said he would withhold the nationality of the injured soldier until the soldier's national ministry of defense was notified. After the attack, a combat force made up of Poles, Bulgarians, Lithuanians and Latvians were sent in to "secure the area and reinforce the city hall," according to a statement e-mailed by another multinational force spokesman, Maj. Slawomir Walenczykowski.
The militia of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr rose up across the south at the beginning of April, taking control of several cities and engaging in bloody battles with coalition forces in the region. Over the past week the militiamen have returned police stations in Karbala, Kufa and Najaf to Iraqi authorities, but gunmen continue to roam the streets and have occasionally fired on coalition troops. Friday's broad daylight attack came just hours after city hall was slammed by mortar fire, injuring an Iraqi policeman, the division reported. On Wednesday and again Thursday, the coalition base in Karbala, known as Camp Kilo, was pounded with rebel mortar rounds. No one was injured, the division reported. Mortar attacks on coalition bases throughout south-central Iraq - including those in Karbala, Najaf and Hillah - have grown more frequent in recent weeks. |