U.S. troops battle Shiite militants in Kufa Thursday

NAJAF, Iraq — Fighting broke out Thursday between U.S. soldiers and Shiite militiamen in Kufa — the eighth straight day of clashes that have all but ruined a deal signed last week aimed at ending violence in the holy city.

At least six Iraqis were killed and 11 injured in the skirmishes in Kufa, Najaf's twin city and a stronghold of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, hospital officials said. Smoke rose over the dun-colored, flat-roofed houses of the city 100 miles south of Baghdad.

Fighting has rocked Kufa since Shiite leaders announced May 27 that al-Sadr had agreed on a formula to end the confrontation with the Americans in Najaf and Kufa, which together contain some of the most sacred shrines in Shia Islam.

The U.S. military called a halt to its offensive operations, but it has retained the right to mount armed patrols, which al-Sadr's militia, the al-Mahdi Army, considers a provocation. The Americans are reluctant to stop patrols until an Iraqi force is ready to assume security responsibility. Most of the police deserted after al-Sadr launched his rebellion in April.

In the past eight days, 17 Iraqis have been killed and 74 injured, according to hospitals in Kufa. U.S. forces say two U.S. soldiers have been killed and eight injured during the same period.

CNN, which has a correspondent embedded with the 1st Armored Division in the area, said the fighting began after about 100 U.S. soldiers rolled into the center of Kufa early Thursday in search of militiamen who had fired mortar rounds at an American base between Najaf and Kufa.

CNN quoted U.S. officials as estimating that about 30 militiamen were killed, but it didn't say when. Four American soldiers were lightly wounded. CNN said troops found several rounds of mortars, rocket-propelled grenades and rifles hidden in a school in Kufa.

Although Najaf is relatively quiet, daily clashes in Kufa have rendered the truce almost meaningless. The Americans, who consider al-Sadr a gangster, have refused direct negotiations with him.

Following Thursday's initial clashes, residents of Kufa ventured carefully into the streets, examining charred market stalls and other signs of battle damage. At least one large crater pocked a dirt road. Merchants showed twisted piles of molten debris which had once been their sources of livelihood.

Others picked up shattered belongings amid the remains of their dwellings damaged in the exchange. One older man picked up the tail of a mortar round that had landed nearby and shook his head as he showed it to reporters.