( dpa ) - The US and Iraqi military killed several militants in Baghdad's Sadr City neighbourhood after a convoy came under attack, while radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr accused forces of attacking the area.
After the killing of a family member and aide of al-Sadr, his office accused US and Iraqi forces of attacking Baghdad's Sadr City neighbourhood, CNN reported Friday.
Witnesses reported heavy fighting and hours-long bombings in the area, the broadcaster said.
The US military said in a statement on Friday that soldiers killed two snipers, two people firing rocket-propelled grenades and several others after coming under attack in the area. Simultaneously, a US convoy supporting Iraqi troops was damaged by six roadside bombs and came under fire from nearby buildings. The soldiers returned fire and killed at least four of the attackers.
The military then fired two rounds from a tank, killing two more people.
Later, an Air Force drone killed three people planting a road side bomb.
Riyad al-Nuri, one of al-Sadr's closest aides, was killed by militants in front of his house north of Najaf on Friday. Iraqi forces responded by imposing a curfew in Najaf, especially in areas where Sadrists are centralized.