US launches big operation south of Baghdad

Baghdad, July 16: Around 8,000 US forces launched a fresh operation today targeting Islamist al Qaeda militants in farmland south of Baghdad, the military said.

The operation, called Marne Avalanche, is designed to stem the flow of weapons and militant fighters into the southern part of the capital, where US and Iraqi forces are already fighting hard to clear them out, the military said in a statement.

In pre-dawn raids, helicopter-borne troops swept into an area the US military said was an al Qaeda safe haven around the Euphrates river valley, 35 km (22 miles) south of Baghdad.

The terrain, criss-crossed with an extensive canal system, has been the location of fierce fighting between US forces and militants in the past and at least one air strike was called in during the early hours of the operation, a spokeswoman said.

Tens of thousands of US and Iraqi forces are engaged in a series of security clampdowns in and around Baghdad to thwart sectarian violence pushing Iraq towards full civil war.

Reuters

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