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Iraq's Sadr Bloc Claims Aide Killed by US Troops
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=158275A:A6F02AD83191E1607AC0805A477A3A669574F7DCC14957C0 Spokesman says US,
Iraqi soldiers raided Sahib al-Ameri's home early Wednesday near Najaf
and shot him dead Radical Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's group
has accused U.S. forces of killing a senior member of the group, and
called for a government investigation.







A young mourner carries a picture of Sahib al-Ameri (L), a senior ally
of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr (seated next to him in the
picture)A spokesman says U.S. and Iraqi soldiers raided the home of
Sahib al-Ameri early Wednesday near the city of Najaf and shot him
dead.

The U.S. military said coalition troops killed a man in a raid that
was planned and executed by Iraqi forces. The military did not
identify the dead man, but said he was a suspect in roadside bombing
attacks in the area.

In other violence, Iraqi police say eight people were killed in a car
bomb blast near an Iraqi army checkpoint in eastern Baghdad.

In another development, senior U.S. defense officials say the Pentagon
is expected to send more than 3,000 troops into Kuwait to be ready for
use in Iraq. Defense Secretary Robert Gates must sign off on the
deployment, which could be part of a short-term increase in U.S. troop
level in Iraq aimed at ending rising violence.

Last week, Gates held three days of talks with U.S. military officials
and Iraqi leaders in Baghdad, discussing strategies for reducing the
violence.

President Bush is reported to be considering sending up to 30,000
additional troops to Iraq.


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