U.S. forces in Iraq have launched more artillery and airstrikes in a final push to secure the city of Fallujah, as fighting rages elsewhere in the country.
U.S. military commanders said insurgents still holding out in the battered city will be killed.
U.S. officials say 38 U.S. troops, six Iraqi soldiers, and an estimated 1,200 insurgents have been killed since the battle for Fallujah began eight days ago. They say 275 U.S. soldiers and Marines have been wounded. Authorities have not released a tally of civilian casualties.
Meanwhile, in Baquba, U.S. officials say about 20 insurgents were killed today after they attacked a police station and a convoy of U.S. troops. At least four U.S. soldiers were wounded.
The U.S. military says U.S. warplanes later dropped two 226-kilogram bombs on Baquba insurgents who arrived earlier in the day aboard a bus.