海角大神

Iraqi troops trying to retake聽聽province from a mixture of Islamist and tribal foes battled al Qaeda fighters in Ramadi on Saturday after shelling the western region's other main city, Falluja, overnight, tribal leaders and officials said.

At least eight people were killed and 30 were wounded in Falluja, and residents of both cities said the fighting had limited their access to food, and that they were running low on generator fuel.

Shops were sending food to mosques, and people were being asked through loudspeakers to go to collect it.

Falluja has been held since Monday by Sunni Muslim militants linked to al Qaeda and tribal fighters united in their opposition to Prime Minister聽, in a serious challenge to the authority of his Shi'ite-led government in聽听辫谤辞惫颈苍肠别.

Al Qaeda's Islamic State of聽聽and the聽聽(ISIL) has been steadily tightening its grip in the Sunni-dominated desert province bordering聽聽in recent months in a bid to create a Sunni Muslim state straddling the frontier.

But this week's seizure of territory in Ramadi and Falluja was the first time in years that Sunni insurgents had taken effective control of the region's most important cities and held their positions for days.

In Ramadi, tribesmen and the聽聽have been working together to counter the al Qaeda insurgents.

However, in Falluja, ISIL's task has been made easier by tribesmen who have joined its fight against the government.

Officials and witnesses said the northern and eastern parts of the city were under the control of tribesmen and militants on Saturday after residents fled to take refuge from the聽聽shelling, and that the militants had deployed snipers atop empty houses and government buildings.聽

STREET FIGHTING

In Ramadi, military anti-terrorist teams were fighting al Qaeda militants in the streets after tribesmen asked for help from the聽, which had been deployed only on the outskirts of the city, tribal sources said.

"We asked them to raid the area or bomb it with jets, but they keep refusing as they say they do not want anyone to accuse them of attacking residential areas," a tribal militia leader in Ramadi told Reuters by telephone.

Tribal leader Sheikh聽聽said the tribesmen were finding it hard to hunt down the militants in southern and eastern Ramadi as families had taken them into their homes.

"We cannot persuade the people to kick them out," he said.

罢丑别听聽said it controlled the entrance to Falluja and were gearing up for strikes against the militants in both cities.

"We prefer not to attack now, as the militants have been deployed among the families," said聽, media adviser to the commander of the anti-terrorist squad.

"We call on people in Ramadi and Falluja to stay away from the militants as there will be lethal strikes targeting those militants in the coming hours."

He said at least 18 ISIL snipers had been killed since Friday night in Ramadi and Falluja.

罢丑别听聽sent convoys with food aid to both cities but could not enter because of the heavy fighting.

Tension has been running high across聽聽- the heart of聽's Sunni insurgency after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion - since聽聽broke up a Sunni protest camp on Monday. At least 13 people were killed in those clashes.

The escalating tension shows that the civil war in聽, where mostly Sunni rebels are battling President Bashar al-Assad, who is backed by Shi'ite Iran, is spilling over to聽聽and threatening its delicate sectarian balance.

Additional reporting by Kamal Namaa; Writing by Ahmed Rasheed and Rania El Gamal