Hospitals: 10 dead from Falluja airstrikes
U.S. military says intelligence indicates no civilians at targets
FALLUJA, Iraq (CNN) -- U.S. airstrikes in Falluja in the past 24 hours have killed 10 Iraqis and wounded 16 others, including several children, according to hospital officials.
The U.S. military described one of the airstrikes in the eastern part of the city as "a precision strike on yet another confirmed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi terrorist site" and insisted only terrorists, not civilians, would have been killed. Al-Zarqawi is a Jordanian-born militant linked to al Qaeda who is responsible for a string of insurgent and terrorist attacks.
However, video and still photos of the scene -- shot by Reuters and Associated Press photographers -- showed two young children's bodies being pulled from the rubble.
A strike Saturday night killed one and wounded four, Falluja General Hospital officials said.
The U.S. military said it targeted a building on the outskirts of town where 15-20 insurgents were involved in "military-style training."
An airstrike in the Jurayfi neighborhood killed six, including three children and a woman, and wounded 12 others, according to hospital officials. In another neighborhood, hospital officials reported three killed from the airstrikes.
CNN video from the hospital showed at least one dead young girl, and several other wounded children and adults.
A U.S. military statement said intelligence indicated "no innocent civilians" were in the house in eastern Falluja when it was attacked Friday night, and their sources reported "approximately 10 terrorists" were there.
"Several credible intelligence sources confirmed that members of the terrorist group used this location to plan for suicide attacks on innocent civilians and Iraqi forces," the military said.
