Car bomb kills at least 9 in Baghdad; US troops kill 18 militants

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A parked car bomb aimed at a US patrol Thursday in Baghdad killed at least nine Iraqi civilians and wounded 26, police said. American troops killed 18 militants amid escalating fighting in Sadr City, and another US soldier was killed as the monthly military death toll increased to a seven-month high of 50. The explosion occurred about 9:15 a.m. in a crowded commercial area in eastern Baghdad, police officials said, adding the nine killed included three women and a child. The US military said no American soldiers were killed, although three were wounded in the attack. Health officials also said clashes in Baghdad's Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City killed eight people, including two women and a child, and wounded 22 others, including women and children.