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| Curfew extended in Iraqi capital | |
| (about 12 hours later) | |
| Baghdad's military command has extended a round-the clock curfew in the city for an indefinite period. | Baghdad's military command has extended a round-the clock curfew in the city for an indefinite period. |
| It was imposed on Thursday amid clashes between troops and Shia militias in Baghdad and elsewhere, and had been due to expire early on Sunday morning. | |
| The extension came hours after radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr said his Mehdi Army militia would defy a government call to lay down its weapons. | |
| Across Iraq, fighting has claimed more than 200 lives since Tuesday. | |
| The BBC's Crispin Thorold in Baghdad says the curfew extension will damage the capital economically, as well as inconveniencing residents. | The BBC's Crispin Thorold in Baghdad says the curfew extension will damage the capital economically, as well as inconveniencing residents. |
| The initial imposition of the curfew was a sign of how badly security in Baghdad had deteriorated, he says. | The initial imposition of the curfew was a sign of how badly security in Baghdad had deteriorated, he says. |
| Baghdad, particularly the Shia-dominated Sadr City area in the east of the city, has seen some of the worst violence in recent days, including a series of US air strikes on Friday. | Baghdad, particularly the Shia-dominated Sadr City area in the east of the city, has seen some of the worst violence in recent days, including a series of US air strikes on Friday. |
| Air strikes | Air strikes |
| The curfew extension came after a day of skirmishes between security forces and Shia militiamen in the southern city of Basra, where the current wave of unrest began. | The curfew extension came after a day of skirmishes between security forces and Shia militiamen in the southern city of Basra, where the current wave of unrest began. |
| Fierce gun battles were reported, while the UK military said US warplanes carried out two air strikes. | Fierce gun battles were reported, while the UK military said US warplanes carried out two air strikes. |
| Iraqi police said an earlier US air strike killed eight people, although no independent confirmation was available. | Iraqi police said an earlier US air strike killed eight people, although no independent confirmation was available. |
| Turkey hits rebel targets | |
| British forces in the city fired artillery rounds on what they said were militia mortar positions - the first time they had directly joined the fighting since government forces launched the operation in Basra. | |
| Iraqi forces have been trying to wrest control of the city and other Shia areas from the Mehdi Army. | Iraqi forces have been trying to wrest control of the city and other Shia areas from the Mehdi Army. |
| In an interview, Moqtada Sadr said he would ignore the call by the Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri Maliki, for his forces to surrender their weapons. | |
| He said they would only be handed over to a government which could get the occupying forces out of Iraq. | |
| Mr Maliki has extended an original three-day deadline, telling the fighters they had until 8 April to hand in their weapons in return for cash. | |
| On Saturday the prime minister vowed that government troops will not leave Basra until "security is restored", describing the gunmen as "worse than al-Qaeda". | On Saturday the prime minister vowed that government troops will not leave Basra until "security is restored", describing the gunmen as "worse than al-Qaeda". |
| Iraqi soldiers have met fierce resistance in Basra"We will continue to stand up to these gangs in every inch of Iraq," he said. | Iraqi soldiers have met fierce resistance in Basra"We will continue to stand up to these gangs in every inch of Iraq," he said. |
| Meanwhile Al-Jazeera TV broadcast excerpts from an exclusive interview with Moqtada Sadr that it conducted hours before the beginning of the clashes on Tuesday. | Meanwhile Al-Jazeera TV broadcast excerpts from an exclusive interview with Moqtada Sadr that it conducted hours before the beginning of the clashes on Tuesday. |
| Mr Sadr called on Arab and Muslims states and the UN to "recognise the legitimacy of resistance" and offer support to Iraqi to "drive the occupation forces out of its land". | Mr Sadr called on Arab and Muslims states and the UN to "recognise the legitimacy of resistance" and offer support to Iraqi to "drive the occupation forces out of its land". |
| Power struggle | Power struggle |
| Estimates vary of the number of deaths since the fighting broke out. | |
| Health officials in Baghdad say at least 75 people have been killed while in Basra, the British military give a death toll of 50. | |
| However, Basra medical sources report as many as 290 dead and an Iraqi army commander, Maj-Gen Ali Zaidan, said on Friday his forces had killed 120 "enemy" fighters there. He did not give casualty figures for his own soldiers. | |
| Scores of people are believed to have been killed in other southern cities, according to Iraqi police or medical reports. | |
| At least 44 people were killed in and around Kut, 15 in Nasiriya, 12 in Karbala and six in Hilla. | |
| The fighting is blamed on a power struggle between rival Shia factions. | |
| Moqtada Sadr's followers have in the past rebelled against the US-backed government, although the cleric's political bloc has backed Mr Maliki's ruling coalition. | Moqtada Sadr's followers have in the past rebelled against the US-backed government, although the cleric's political bloc has backed Mr Maliki's ruling coalition. |
| A ceasefire by the Mehdi Army, in place since August 2007 and renewed in February, has been widely credited with reducing sectarian tensions and contributing to the recent overall drop in violence. | A ceasefire by the Mehdi Army, in place since August 2007 and renewed in February, has been widely credited with reducing sectarian tensions and contributing to the recent overall drop in violence. |
| Correspondents say Moqtada Sadr's supporters fear the prime minister - also a Shia - wishes to weaken their movement before local elections due later this year. | Correspondents say Moqtada Sadr's supporters fear the prime minister - also a Shia - wishes to weaken their movement before local elections due later this year. |
In separate developments on Saturday:
| In separate developments on Saturday:
|