| Boy! When did that start? |
US forces raided a foreign insurgents' weapons smuggling ring yesterday near the Iraqi town of Qaim along the Syrian border, killing an unknown number of insurgents, the US military said. Residents reported gunbattles and explosions near the remote border town and hospital officials said at least nine people were killed. Insurgents opened fire on US troops during yesterday's raid and a number of foreign militants, including at least one bomber, were killed, the military said in a statement. No US forces were injured. The raid occurred a day after insurgents tried unsuccessfully to ram three car bombs, including one fire truck, into a military base in Qaim. But military officials said the attack was not related to the raid. Residents reported violent clashes before dawn yesterday in the Ish village just north of Qaim, although it was unclear if the violence was related to the raid. Without providing details, the terror group Al-Qaeda in Iraq, led by Jordanian militant Abu Mussab Al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility for the Qaim clashes. The claim, posted on the Internet, couldn't be verified. Hamid Al-Alousi, director of Qaim hospital, said his facility had received nine corpses and nearly two dozen wounded in the Ish village violence. Residents of the village said a dozen more people were buried in the area and not taken to the hospital. There was no way to independently confirm their claim. US military officials added that two other raids in the area in the last week resulted in the capture of smugglers who "confessed to bringing weapons, foreign fighters and money for terrorists across the Syrian border into Iraq."