The US military says a roadside bomb hit one of its convoys in the southern city of Basra, causing casualties. The military gave no further details. AP Television News footage from Basra on Monday showed smoke rising from a vehicle burning on a highway overpass. US troops and Humvees blocked access to the scene. (AP)

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PLANS to withdraw further British troops from Iraq have been put on hold in the light of recent disturbances in Basra, Defence Secretary Des Browne told the House of Commons today. Mr Browne said that the UK deployment in the south of the country would be maintained at its current strength of around 4,000 while [...]

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BAGHDAD, March 31 (KUNA) — The Iraqi Interior istry announced on Monday that some 215 militants were killed during the past week in the clashes that erupted in the southern city of Basra within the framework of the “Charge of the Knights” operation supervised by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki.
According to medical sources, some 109 [...]

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British jets have unleashed a hail of cannon fire around Basra, forcing militia to take cover as fighting in the city continued for a fourth day.
The show of force came after US pilots strafed suspected insurgent positions in the first air attacks since the launch of the Iraqi-led clampdown on Shia insurgents which has sparked [...]

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A SOLDIER from Ripon has won recognition for his bravery while under enemy fire in Iraq. Sgt Scott Arthur, 36, of the Yorkshire Regiment has been awarded a Mention in Dispatches after leading a team through small-arms fire while on a mission in the city of Basra.
The official military report of the incident tells how [...]

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Baghdad - Police said Wednesday 17 border guards have been shot dead by gunmen in different areas in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. The killings occurred over the last 24 hours, police sources told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.The sources did not say whether the killings were carried out by the same gunmen and what the [...]

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TWO Bolton soldiers, who are stationed in Iraq, are training to run the London Marathon.
Corporal Damien Byrne and Sergeant Major Stephen Tickle will join other members of the 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster regiment in returning to the UK to compete in the race on April 13.
The group has been serving in Iraq since [...]

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U.S. soldiers and Iraqi militants exchanged fire after a rocket attack from a Shi’ite Mehdi Army militia stronghold on a U.S. base southeast of Baghdad, Iraqi police said on Thursday.
An Iraqi police official, who asked not to be identified, said as many as 11 Katyusha rockets landed on the U.S. base near Kut, 170 km [...]

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A TEENAGE soldier from Whitehaven who was ambushed by Iraqi insurgents has been praised by army chiefs for his “courage under fire”.
Kingsman Jordan Cunningham, of Crummock Road, was one of 16 soldiers who came under heavy machine-gun fire in a rare attack at Al Qibla in Basra. Working in two teams the soldiers covered each [...]

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A WOMAN pilot based at RAF Benson who dodged low-flying missiles to rescue a dying soldier in Iraq will tomorrow be awarded the forces’ highest honour.
Flight Lieutenant Michelle Goodman - who flies Merlin helicopters stationed at the South Oxfordshire base - will become the first woman to be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross at a [...]

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