U.S. seizes police officer alleged to have Iran ties

BAGHDAD — U.S. soldiers killed six Iraqi policemen and seven gunmen Friday during a street battle that began when the troops captured a police lieutenant accused of directing a Shiite militia group, the military said.

The predawn raid in eastern Baghdad came a day after another clash in the same area that left at least 11 Iraqis dead. In both cases, U.S. forces were targeting Shiite militias in an attempt to curb their influence. Militiamen have infiltrated police units, and many members of the country's Sunni minority do not trust the police.

The military described the lieutenant as having ties to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, which U.S. officials say supports Shiite militias in Iraq. Iranian officials have denied such assertions.

As troops seized the lieutenant, they came under fire from gunmen at an Iraqi police checkpoint, a nearby church and several rooftops, the military said. The soldiers returned fire, aided by an American aircraft overhead.

The chief spokesman for the Interior Ministry, which oversees the police, said he had received no information about the incident from U.S. officials and could not comment. The spokesman, Abdul Kareem al-Kinani, said three police officers were killed and nine others injured when an American commander mistakenly fired on a police checkpoint early Friday morning at al-Tayaran Square in central Baghdad. A U.S. Embassy spokesman said he had no information on that incident.

Also

Reporter killed: An Iraqi reporter for The New York Times was killed Friday as he drove to work from his home in the Sadiyah neighborhood of Baghdad. Khalid Hassan, 23, was the 110th reporter killed in Iraq since the conflict began in 2003, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Hassan's death came the day after a photographer and driver for the Reuters news service were killed during U.S. military action in Baghdad.

Bodies found: Iraqi police also reported that 26 bodies were found Friday in Baghdad neighborhoods. The victims had all been shot in the head and tortured. An additional eight bodies, including three women, were found near Suwayrah, about 20 miles southeast of Baghdad.

Civilian deaths: A number of other Iraqis were killed in Baghdad on Friday, police said, including three civilians killed by mortar rounds that fell on their homes. Two civilians were killed when a roadside bomb detonated in the Shiite district of Sadr City.

Green Zone shelling: Two Iraqi police officers were killed in the Green Zone when four mortar shells were fired into the heavily fortified compound Friday, Iraqi police said. The attack was the second this week against the zone, which houses the U.S. Embassy and Iraqi government buildings. Three people were killed and 18 injured Tuesday when mortar rounds were fired into the zone.

Insurgent surrenders: The U.S. military said a reputed leader of al-Qaida in Iraq surrendered to U.S. forces and Iraqi troops at Baghdad airport Friday. The man was blamed for car bombings and mortar attacks in western Baghdad and in hot spots such as Mahmoudiya just south of the capital, the military said, but gave no further information.

Information from the Los Angeles Times is included in this report.