Marines die in suicide bombing as capital hit by new clashes

Several American Marines died in a suicide bombing in the centre of Baghdad yesterday after a day of intense battles between US forces and Saddam loyalists, mostly from other Arab countries.

A man approached a US checkpoint near the Palestine Hotel and exploded a bomb, killing and injuring a number of marines.

The attack occurred near the hotel where most foreign journalists are staying and close to the square where a statue of President Saddam was toppled on Wednesday.

A US Marine captain, Joe Plenzler, said that "a man strapped with explosives approached a marine checkpoint and detonated himself".

Earlier, marines fought gun battles for more than four hours for control of a mosque in central Baghdad amid rumours that President Saddam and senior members of his regime had taken refuge inside.

Close to a bend in the Tigris, American troops battled against volunteer fighters from across the Arab world armed with automatic weapons and rocket launchers. US planes flew low overhead bombing areas under Arab control.

Other pockets of fighting flared in different parts of the city, underlining how volatile the capital remains and how premature are claims that American forces are fully in control of the capital.

At least one US Marine and a number of Arab fighters were killed in the battles. US commanders said last night that they had secured the mosque but there appeared to be no sign of President Saddam.

Despite claims that the US troops are positioned throughout the city, their presence appears concentrated in just a few strategic points and on bridges crossing the river. Elsewhere the city is slipping further into lawlessness as thousands of looters exploit the inability of the Americans to enforce civil control as they continue to fight pockets of resistance.

The fight at the Imam al-Adham mosque in the Aadhamiya district of Baghdad appears to have been a somewhat different case. The battle was initiated by US forces who were acting on a tip that a group of senior Iraqi figures had entered the building.

"We had information that a group of regime leadership was attempting to organise a meeting. The fighting in and around the mosque complex could not be avoided as enemy forces were firing from the area of the mosque," Captain Frank Thorp said from the US Central Command regional headquarters in Qatar.

Whether President Saddam was ever at the mosque was unclear but marine commanders said the target was of "significant military value" and the American forces ordered in air strikes to try to dislodge the fighters. The Arab fighters responded with machine-gun and mortar fire and rocket- propelled grenades. In addition to the marine fatality, 20 were wounded.

US forces believe there are several thousand Arab fighters in Iraq, having joined the fight from countries across the region, including Jordan, Egypt and the Sudan. In the Aadhamiya district and in nearby Waziriyah Arab fighters were in control of a number of streets and had established road checkpoints.

There were also reports of many of them being spotted in the Mansur district, west of the Tigris, where the regime's intelligence service was based. Earlier there were reports of fighting near an oil refinery in south-western Baghdad, while marines also moved through the north-eastern suburb of Saddam City, using heavy artillery, mortar and machine-gun fire to kill those fighters still shooting.

While the US forces fought Arab volunteers, there was no sign of the regular Iraqi forces, most having long ago discarded their uniforms and mingled with the civilian population.

US forces admit they do not have enough troops both to police the city and deal with remaining fighters. "There's civilian looting like crazy, all over the place. There just aren't enough of us to clear it out," said Marine Lance Corporal Darren Pickard, who was trying to protect a police academy compound that was being picked over by looters.