- NEAR NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters)
- U.S. troops fought a fierce battle with Iraqi forces on Wednesday for
control of a bridge over the Euphrates river close to the southern Iraqi
city of Najaf, a U.S. military officer monitoring the clash said.
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- He said an unspecified number of U.S. tanks and Bradley
fighting vehicles had been destroyed by Iraqis armed with rocket propelled
grenades and automatic rifles during the clash at Abu Sukhayr, 13 miles
southeast of Najaf.
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- He said he believed that the U.S. crews, under the command
of the 3rd Infantry division, had escaped from their vehicles but their
fate was still unclear.
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- Reuters correspondent Andrew Gray, reporting from near
Najaf, said he heard jets flying overhead. The officer said air support
had been called in to support the U.S. forces.
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