US forces killed around 90 insurgents in Iraqi towns north and south of Baghdad yesterday, but talks in the holy city of Najaf between US and Iraqi forces and radical Shiite militiamen collapsed, Iraq's national security adviser Mowaffaq al-Rubaie said yesterday.
"The talks have failed. All efforts to end this have not succeeded," he told reporters.
Militants loyal to radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have been battling US and Iraqi forces in Najaf for 10 days in fighting that has killed hundreds and sent thousands of protesters into the streets.
Fresh violence erupted elsewhere on the eve of a national conference for advancing the nation's progress towards democracy, already overshadowed by the Shiite Muslim uprising.
The US military said it had killed about 50 fighters near the northern town of Samarra, a mainly Sunni Muslim area where US troops have launched repeated raids to flush out guerrillas opposed to the presence of foreign troops in Iraq.
Planes dropped 227kg bombs, while insurgents responded with rifle fire and rocket-propelled grenades, a US military statement said, adding that there were no US casualties.
Iraqi police in Samarra said at least five people were killed and 50 wounded in fighting in the area, 100km north of Baghdad.
Fighting also raged between US troops and al-Sadr's followers in the southern Shiite town of Hilla overnight. Forty fighters and three police were killed, Iraq's interior ministry said.
The clashes followed a day of relative calm in Najaf, where US marines backed by tanks and warplanes launched an assault on Thursday aimed at crushing a rebellion by al-Sadr's fighters.
The truce seemed to be holding for a second day in Najaf yesterday, allowing some residents to venture out and inspect the damage of more than a week of fighting.
Militiamen remained in some streets around the Imam Ali Mosque and a nearby vast cemetery while US forces patrolled other parts of the city.
US DEATHS
Separately, the US military reported that one soldier and one Marine were killed on Friday in western Iraq.
The surge in fighting has proved the most serious challenge for Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi since his government assumed power from US occupiers on June 28, tasked with steering the country to elections next January.
The national conference, due to open in Baghdad today, aims to pick a 100-member council to oversee the government.
Allawi said last week that the political process is open to all, but al-Sadr -- buoyed by mass protests of supporters on Friday -- appeared in no mood to cut a deal as his aides said they were offered too little too late.
Encircled by US troops in Najaf's sacred Imam Ali Mosque, al-Sadr pledged to stay in the city until victory or death, dampening hopes that Allawi's government would be able to negotiate a speedy end to the confrontation.
"I will not leave this holy city," he told his fighters, who chanted "no, no to America" in response.
"We will remain here defending the holy shrines till victory or martyrdom," he said.
Al-Sadr appeared before his supporters wearing bandages late on Friday, apparently confirming reports by aides that he had been wounded in fighting earlier in the day.
But Iraqi Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib denied al-Sadr had been wounded.
Iraqi Defense Minister Hazim al-Shalaan told the London-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that foreign fighters were among those captured.
HEART SURGERY
Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric who has been a voice for moderation and whose health could be crucial for Iraq's future stability, has successfully undergone heart surgery in London, an aide said yesterday.
He said there was no indication when the 73-year-old Muslim cleric would be well enough to return to Iraq.
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