US and Iraqi forces continued executing Operation River Gate on Wednesday in western Iraq, while the Iraqi government called upon residents of Haditha village to remain in their homes and cooperate with troops. A US Army statement said that some 2,500 US Marines and more than 3,000 Iraqi soldiers were taking part in regular purgation operations in villages in the province of Al-Anbar, western Iraq.The statement also said that US fighter planes and helicopters shelled a number of bridges in western villages to prevent militants from escaping to Syria. Up to five US marines participating in Operation River Gate had been killed yesterday in the villages of Al-Haqlaniyah and Barawna in Al-Anbar province. Meanwhile, a US Army statement said 41 militants has been killed in the same operation, adding that the operation was launched ten days before the constitution referendum aimed at "liberating local residents from the death and terror campaign being executed by terrorists." For his part, official spokesman for the Iraqi Prime Minister Laith Kabbeh said in a press conference in Baghdad that more than 3,000 Iraqis were currently responsible for control, monitoring and search operations in the village of Haditha. He called upon residents to remain in their homes, stressing that security forces were searching for specific people and at specific locations.