U.S. Attacks Iraq Arms Smugglers

U.S. forces attacked foreign insurgents running a weapons smuggling ring in western Iraq on Tuesday, killing several militants, the military said.

Hospital officials said at least nine people were killed and nearly two dozen wounded near the remote town of Qaim. Residents said a dozen more bodies were buried and not taken to the hospital.

Insurgents opened fire when the U.S. troops began their raid on the smuggling ring, and several militants, including at least one suicide bomber, were killed, the U.S. military said in a statement. No Americans were injured, it said.

The raid occurred a day after insurgents tried unsuccessfully to ram three car bombs, including a fire truck, into a military base in Qaim. But military officials said the attack was not related to the raid.

Residents reported violent clashes before dawn Tuesday in the Ish village just north of Qaim, although it was unclear if the violence was related to the raid.

Without providing details, the terror group al Qaeda in Iraq, led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility for the Qaim clashes. The claim, posted on the Internet, could not be verified.

Hamid al-Alousi, director of Qaim hospital, said the facility had received nine corpses and nearly two dozen wounded in the Ish village violence. Residents of the village said a dozen more people were buried in the area and not taken to the hospital.

There was no way to independently confirm their claims.

U.S. military officials added that two other raids in the area in the last week resulted in the capture of smugglers who "confessed to bringing weapons, foreign fighters and money for terrorists across the Syrian border into Iraq."