Gun Battles Erupt in Basra

Fierce street battles have erupted in Basra after Iraqi forces launched a crackdown against rival Shia militia groups in the southern Iraqi city today.

Iraqi security forces in the city center encountered heavy resistance as fighting broke out with gunmen from Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. Iraqi police said at least four civilians had been killed and 18 wounded.

"The target is to wipe out all the outlaws," Major-General Ali Zaidan, the commander of Iraqi ground forces in the operation, told Reuters. "There were clashes, and many outlaws have been killed."

TV footage showed smoke from explosions rising over the city and Iraqi soldiers exchanging gunfire with militia fighters.

"There are clashes in the streets," a Basra resident told Reuters. "Bullets are coming from everywhere, and we can hear the sound of rocket explosions. This has been going on since dawn."

The British military - which is confined to Basra airbase after returning control of the city to the Iraqis last year - said it was not involved.

The clashes broke out after the Iraqi prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, traveled to the area to announce a crackdown on the increasing clashes between rival Shia factions.

Three factions - the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, the Mahdi Army and the small Fadhila party - are fighting for power in Basra.

The Mahdi Army warned that tensions in Basra would escalate if its members were targeted by the authorities.

"We are calling for calm, but this new security plan has the wrong timing," Harith al-Edhari, the director of Sadr's office in Basra, said today.

Sadr's followers have accused the Shia-dominated government of exploiting a ceasefire to target his supporters prior to provincial elections, expected to take place this autumn.

They have demanded the release of supporters rounded up in recent weeks after the cleric told his followers they were free to defend themselves against attacks.

US officials insisted they were not going after Sadr followers but were targeting renegade elements Washington believes have ties to Iran.

Iraqi authorities have imposed an indefinite night curfew, which began last night, in Basra.

The US military today said five suspected militants had been killed while attempting to plant a roadside bomb in the city.

Ten others were injured after being seen engaging in "suspicious activity", a statement said.