Al-Sadr defiant as U.S. troops kill scores

KARBALA, Iraq — U.S. soldiers battled insurgents led by a rebel Shiite cleric on Friday, killing scores of Iraqis, as the cleric delivered a defiant, derisive sermon that dismissed President Bush's expressions of regret for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners.

"What kind of peace could come from you or your agents when you feel pleasure at torturing prisoners?" the cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, said to cheering supporters at his mosque in Kufa. "How are you going to control the world when you can't control a few soldiers here and there? If anyone did this to one of your people, would you accept it?"

The Americans pursued al-Sadr's forces in the warrens and alleyways of two of the holiest Shiite cities, Karbala and Najaf, where the rebels have barricaded themselves for more than a month. Militiamen fired grenades and AK-47s at more than 100 soldiers, who moved low along walls and inched their way down a milelong stretch of road, returning fire as roadside bombs exploded.

The soldiers killed at least 25 insurgents here, 12 in Najaf and at least 41 in two separate battles around Kufa. There were no U.S. casualties reported Friday, but a Pole and an Algerian working for a Polish television network were killed by gunmen as they drove through the town of Mahmudiya on the road from Baghdad to Najaf. A Polish cameraman was wounded.

The firefights were the most intense since the U.S. military started an operation here on Tuesday night to crush al-Sadr's thousands-strong militia, called the Mahdi Army. The resistance seems to indicate that many of the militiamen are prepared to fight to the death.

More than 2,500 U.S. soldiers have surrounded Najaf but have refrained from a wholesale invasion because its golden-domed central shrine is one of Shiite Islam's holiest sites. On Thursday, U.S. soldiers took over the governor's mansion on the city's outskirts and installed a new governor. Powerful Shiite politicians and religious leaders have called for al-Sadr to withdraw his militia.

Lt. Col. Gary Bishop said the soldiers would continue patrols and raids until they drive the Mahdi Army from the city. He said the goal is to put Iraqi security forces back in charge of Karbala and limit al-Sadr's circle of influence to Najaf, where, it is hoped, senior clerics will deal with him.

In Baghdad, Shiite followers of al-Sadr held a rare joint Friday prayer service with Sunni Muslims at the hard-line Abu Hanifa mosque in the Adhamiya neighborhood, the scene of fierce battles involving U.S. soldiers last month. Organizers said the cooperation showed that Iraqis were united against prisoner abuse.