BAGHDAD, Iraq - In three simultaneous raids north of Baghdad, coalition
forces killed 10 insurgents and an Iraqi civilian on Saturday, and destroyed a
factory being used to make roadside bombs, the US military said.
Iraqi police inspect the scene following an explosion in Tal
Afar, Iraq, Friday, Nov. 24, 2006. [Reuters]
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A pregnant Iraqi woman also was
wounded during the fighting in Taji, a city about 12 miles north of Baghdad
where a major US air base is located.
Coalition forces discovered the factory and hidden caches of rocket-propelled
grenades, machine guns, anti-aircraft weapons and pipe bombs, and called in US
aircraft to destroy them, the military said. Powerful roadside bombs are one of
the most effective weapons insurgents use to kill and wound American soldiers.
During the fighting, soldiers killed 10 insurgents and wounded a pregnant
woman and a teenage boy. The teen was taken to a hospital where he died, the
coalition said. The woman was treated there for minor injuries.
"Coalition forces strive to mitigate risks to civilians while in pursuit of
terrorists. It is always a shame when terrorists hide among civilian women and
children, putting them in harm's way," the US military said in its
statement.