- Resistance forces fired a surface-to-air rocket at an
American Chinook helicopter that was hovering at a low altitude over the
city of al-Qa'im. The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported seeing
the huge burning helicopter plunge to earth and exploding in a blast that
rocked the whole city.
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- In a dispatch posted at 11:20am Tuesday morning Mecca
time, the correspondent reported that fire was still burning in the wreckage
of the aircraft and ammunition was still exploding within the flaming craft.
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- US forces closed in on the wrecked helicopter but at
the time the reporters filing, he had still not been able to approach very
close to it because of the continuing explosions that were going of as
munitions blew amid the wreckage. The Americans had, however, reportedly
recovered the bodies of 14 soldiers from the "Dirty Division"
of US Marines. Witnesses reported that the US troops found the American
crew's corpses 100 meters or more from the burning hulk of the Chinook.
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- Attacks On US Force In Ramadi Reportedly Kills Nine Americans
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- There were intermittent clashes in the at-Ta'mim neighborhood
of Ramadi on Tuesday between Resistance fighters and US troops backed by
the so-called "Iraqi rapid deployment force". The "rapid
deployment force" was brought in from Baghdad after the local "national
guard" of al-Anbar Province resigned en masse.
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- The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam in the city reported
that the Resistance fired a variety of weapons, including pipe rockets.
He reported that the battle would have developed into something larger
had the American troops not withdrawn from the area.
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- According to Mafkarat al-Islam, witnesses reported that
the fighting first broke out at 6 am Tuesday. In the course of the fighting,
three various types of Humvee's were set ablaze and nine US troops were
reportedly killed. Another three American soldiers were apparently wounded
in the clashes. The Jordanian newspaper, al-'Arab al-Yawm, reported that
only two Americans were killed in the fighting. According to a witness,
two Resistance fighters were martyred; one a fraternal Arab volunteer from
Qatar.
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- The fighting went on for about an hour and fifteen minutes
before the Americans withdrew. The correspondent noted that the attacking
Resistance force far outnumbered the Americans stationed in the neighborhood.
The latter therefore withdrew after taking relatively high casualties.
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- At about the time of the US pull out, Resistance forces
fired mortar rounds into the offices of the governorate of al-Anbar, used
by the Americans as a headquarters
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- Resistance Barrage Targets US Barracks In Al-Qa'im
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- Resistance forces fired more than sixteen rockets and
mortar rounds into the US base known as A22 in al-Qa'im on the border with
Syria at 2pm Tuesday afternoon, local time. A customs officer told Mafkarat
al-Islam that the barrage targeted the US rest barracks, but no fires were
seen or sounds of secondary explosions were heard after the attack.
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