CNN REPORTS: BATTLE RAGES FOR 7TH DAY IN SADR CITY: GREEN ZONE HIT AGAIN BY MORTARS AND ROCKETS

Sadr City fighting rages for seventh day

Story Highlights
NEW: Rocket or mortar fire in Baghdad's Green Zone, but no casualties
NEW: Government warns of roadside bombs planted in Sadr City
NEW: Vehicle ban reportedly lifted in some areas
Fighting between Shiite militias and U.S. and Iraqi forces into its seventh day

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/04/12/iraq.main/index.html

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Shiite militias fought U.S. and Iraqi forces in Sadr City, Baghdad, for a seventh day Saturday and a vehicle ban continued to frustrate residents, driven indoors for a week by the battles.

Rocket or mortar fire also struck the Green Zone, the heavily secured neighborhood that is the U.S. seat of power, but no casualities were reported, the U.S. Embassy said.

The U.S.-backed Iraqi troops are fighting the Mehdi Army militia -- which is loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr -- in the sprawling, crowded Baghdad slum.

Witnesses said U.S. aircraft bombarded the area for hours, while media reported rockets slamming into houses and many casualties.

At least 13 people were killed by U.S. and Iraqi forces in various confrontations Friday, the U.S. military said. An Iraqi Interior Ministry official said at least nine people were killed and 22 others wounded. Watch the aerial view from a U.S. drone targeting insurgents on the ground »

Authorities had planned to lift the vehicle ban in Baghdad at 6 a.m. Saturday amid concerns that the curfew was causing a humanitarian crisis, but residents complain the strictures are still in place.

Iraq's Interior Ministry, however, said the ban has been lifted in some areas, and witnesses said a vehicle entry point into Sadr City has been opened.

Witnesses and al-Sadr's office said loudspeaker announcements broadcast from mosques offered updates about Mehdi Army attacks on U.S. military vehicles.

The U.S. military said no U.S. or Iraqi troops were seriously hurt in the fighting. However, a U.S. soldier was killed Saturday by a roadside bomb elsewhere in Baghdad, the military said.

Authorities warned Sadr City residents to be careful if they ventured into the streets.