Baquba: 13 Iraqis killed in clashes with U.S.

Baghdad - Thirteen Iraqis have been killed in fierce battles with US occupation forces in the Buhruz area, south of Baquba, after American troops tried to search civilian homes.

The US military said Iraqi security forces killed "insurgents" but there were no independent reports to confirm this.

At least four Iraqis, including a child, were wounded in Sunday's conflict, reported Aljazeera's correspondent Salah Hasan. The toll is expected to rise.

Residents resisted the troops as they tried to enter their homes during search operations, said Hasan.

White-flagged cars transferred the wounded to Baquba's general hospital. However, not all the injured have been moved, he added. Baquba is about 75km north of the capital Baghdad.

Explosions could be heard from Buhruz. Many families fled the area while others took refuge in nearby mosques.

In Baghdad, armed men assassinated a former regional official who worked under ousted Iraqi president Saddam Hussein's government and his son in a drive-by shooting.

Brigadier Khalid Dawud, former head of the Nahyia district in Baghdad, was driving in the suburb of al-Dura on Sunday when another car pulled up and opened fire, said police. The assailants fled.

It was the latest in a string of assassinations to hit Iraq since the fall of Hussein.

Also, a suspected car bomb exploded in western Baghdad, shaking the city but causing no injuries, said the US military.

In other news, a US soldier was killed and another is in critical condition after a roadside bomb attack on their vehicle north of Baghdad, said the military on Sunday.

The attack occurred on Saturday near the town of Baiji,

about 180km (112 miles) north of Baghdad. -- Al Jazeera

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