US Helicopter Kills At Least 24 Civilians In Fallujah

"An American plane fired at about 10:30 am (0630 GMT) on our houses," one resident, who did not want to give his name, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Other residents said an American helicopter fired a missile which destroyed two houses and damaged two others in the Jbail district of the 300,000-inhabited city, 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of Baghdad .

American military spokesman Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt claimed the strike targeted suspects linked to Al-Qaead militant Abu Mussab Zarqawi.

Washington has been blaming most of attacks on its occupation forces on Zarqawi and Al-Qaeda.

This is the first American attack on the flashpoint city since US marines withdrew at the beginning of May after a month of fierce clashes.

At least 700 Iraqis, mostly women and children, were killed and 1500 others injured when the US occupation forces imposed a tight siege on the city and intensified air strikes on its densely-populated areas.

A truce was later agreed, under which an Iraqi force was put in charge of security in the city.

But on April 13, the US troops breached the ceasefire, killing at least nine Iraqis and wounding up to 38 others.

This is deadliest American attack on civilians since May, when US helicopters killed more than 40 people, including several children, during a wedding party in western Iraq .

Although the occupation forces claimed the attack was on a safe house used by foreign fighters entering Iraq from Syria , the Associated Press aired a video tape showing a decorated wedding vehicle and guests arriving for the celebrations followed by scenes of death and destruction.

More Casualties

In the meantime, a Portuguese telecoms staffer and two Iraqis working for Iraq ‘s oil company in the south were killed by a roadside bomb near the city of Basra , 500 kilometers (300 miles) south of Baghdad , officials were quoted by the AFP.

An Indian was also wounded, while police and the British military in the area differed over whether one or two Iraqis had also been hurt.

The blast, the latest in a wave of attacks affecting Iraq ‘s southern oil industry, came after a US military official said oil exports from the area would resume Sunday, June 20.

In northern Baghdad , an explosive device hit a convoy of vehicles working for Kellogg Brown and Root, a unit of the American oilfield services giant Halliburton , US military sources said.

A lorry was set ablaze but there were no casualties.

At least 35 people were killed and 120 wounded when a powerful car bomb exploded early Thursday, June 17, at the gates of a recruitment centre for the new Iraqi army in Baghdad .

The bombing came few hours after seven foreigners, including three US occupation soldiers, and five Iraqis were killed in separate attacks across the war-ravaged country.

A car bomber blew himself up on a busy Baghdad street early Monday, June 14, as a convoy of vehicles from the U.S.-led occupation drove past, killing at least 12 people, including five foreigners, and wounding up to 50 others.

It came hard on the heels of a deadly bombing that rocked the Iraqi capital Sunday, June 13, and killed 16 Iraqis.