Seven Iraqis were injured in a US-British raid on the south of the country yesterday, according to the Iraqi military. "Enemy warplanes bombed civilian installations... and seven Iraqi civilians were injured," according to a statement issued today.
US military spokesman Mr Joe Lamarca today confirmed that US fighters had attacked anti-air defences in the south of the country on Sunday, after the Iraqis moved them inside a no-fly zone.
Sunday's strikes took place near Al Kut, 100 miles southeast of Baghdad, and in An Nasariyah, 170 miles southeast of the capital, Mr Lamarca said.
An Iraqi spokesman, who did not give the exact location of the raid, said Iraqi "anti-air defenses responded today and forced the enemy warplanes to flee back to their bases in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait."
US and British warplanes patrol the north and south of Iraq to enforce zone restrictions imposed after the 1991 Gulf war.
Iraq does not recognize the no-fly zones and frequently claims that raids injure civilians, although it has rarely been able to prove the allegations. It says 323 people have been killed and 957 injured since December 28th, when Iraq began to confront the warplanes following a US-British bombing campaign.
AFP