US air strike slays 5 Iraqi civilians

Press TV
Wednesday, March 26, 2008

A US air strike has killed five Iraqi civilians including a judge in the northern town of Tikrit, wounding 10 others, Iraqi police say.

Confirming the killings, US forces claimed that civilians had been struck during a battle with suspected al-Qaeda Sunni Arab militants which included strikes from fixed-wing aircraft, Reuters reported.

"After the air strike, coalition forces continued to receive heavy enemy fire as armed terrorists ran from the target and attempted to hide in neighboring homes using the occupants as human shields," they said in a statement.

"Preliminary assessment indicates that despite coalition forces' efforts to protect them, several civilians were injured or killed during the ensuing gun battle," it said.

Iraqi police said five civilians were killed and 10 wounded in the air strike. The dead included Munaf Mehdi, a judge in the town.