WAR: U.S. Forces Storm Iraqi Town, Say 94 Rebels Killed, page 1

The town of Samarra was the scene of major action by US forces Friday. All told more than 100 guerrillas were killed in intensive battle involving air strikes and street to street fighting. This is the beginning of a new offensive to regain control of the city. A spokesperson for the local hospital indicated that he had 47 bodies of which 11 were women and 5 children. A US army spokesman for the 1st Infantry Division indicated that Iraqi commandos had seized the famous Golden Mosque and captured 25 rebels inside.

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SAMARRA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S.-led forces stormed Samarra on Friday and said nearly 100 guerrillas were killed in air strikes and street-to-street combat during a major new American offensive to wrest control of the Iraqi town.

Doctors at Samarra's hospital said 47 bodies were brought in, including 11 women, five children and seven elderly men. They said ambulances could not reach many wounded as fighting, which lasted throughout the night, was still going on.

A spokesman for the U.S. 1st Infantry Division said an estimated 94 insurgents were killed. He said Iraqi commandos had taken over Samarra's Golden Mosque and seized 25 rebels inside. Iraqi troops also secured the town's renowned spiral minaret.

The Interior Ministry in Baghdad said that by midday (5 a.m. EDT) Iraqi police were in control of the center of Samarra and most surrounding areas after a joint U.S. and Iraqi operation to "remove the terrorists who have been holding the town hostage."

Before dawn, troops backed by tanks pushed through the streets as guerrillas unleashed mortar attacks and fired rocket-propelled grenades and rifles from the rooftops.

Sporadic fighting was still being heard in the early afternoon and electricity and water were cut off in the town of more than 100,000 people, 100 km (60 miles) north of Baghdad.

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By midday the Interior Ministry indicated that Iraqi police were in control of the center of the town and surrounding areas. The town home to over 100,000 people had its electricity and water cut off as the fighting continued into the afternoon. US forces have vowed to retake guerrilla strongholds in order to allow election to take place in January. The city had previously been classified as a no go zone by the military. The military indicated that 3 US soldiers were wounded during the operation. A US helicopter took damage from small arms fire but was able to land safely. A Turkish hostage was also freed as part of the operation. It is not clear if that was coincidental or a planned operation.