US forces re-enter Karbala
Sunday 23 May 2004, 1:16 Makka Time, 22:16 GMT
US occupation forces have re-entered Karbala's city centre, but find no signs of the Mahdi Army.
"About 40 tanks and military vehicles advanced on the city centre by three roads," into the area around the shrine of Imam Hussein, a local resident said on Saturday night.
The occupation soldiers then ordered residents in Arabic over loudspeakers "not to go on their porches, not to approach windows and not to open their doors."
Their advance to the city centre came hours after a top US general denied claims by an Iraqi resistance leader that a pull-back from the locality was being finalised.
Karbala - holy to Shias around the world - has witnessed heavy fighting between occupation forces and Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army over the last few weeks.
Strong denial
Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt said he had heard the reports but was "not aware of any withdrawal going on in Karbala".
...cont'd
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D61622A9-3CF6-4F38-9C38-1B84E81C8BEE.htm
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