US helicopter downed by Iraqi forces

No location was given for the crash, but the aircraft was from the 101st Airborne Division, which yesterday led ground and air attacks against what commanders called an Iraqi terrorist training camp, about 95 miles north of Baghdad.

The two pilots were rescued by ground forces almost immediately as two other helicopters engaged "irregular" Iraqi forces nearby. It was the first aircraft downed by hostile fire since the fall of Saddam Hussein.

Close to 40 US soldiers have been killed in attacks and ambushes in Iraq since Saddam’s overthrow, with eight fatalities in the last two weeks. Frequent ambushes, especially at night, have seen the use of land mines, rocket-propelled grenades and, in some cases, diversionary fire.

Paul Bremer, the US civilian administrator of Iraq, yesterday blamed elements of Saddam’s Republican Guard and other "terrorist groups" intent on sabotaging the reconstruction effort inside Iraq.

"Sometimes there is looting, but very often it’s sabotage," he said. "It’s an organised programme not yet, as far as we can tell, centrally directed."

Mr Bremer’s office yesterday issued a notice banning all gatherings, pronouncements or publications that incited disorder or violence aimed at occupation forces or at the return of the Baath Party.

The decree said it was not intended to "exclude or inhibit legitimate debate and criticism, or to stifle political expression".

Leaflets in troubled areas around Baghdad offer rewards for killing American soldiers, US officials said yesterday.

The raid against the camp was described in a statement from the US military command as part of "the continued effort to eradicate Baath Party loyalists, paramilitary groups and other subversive elements".

The area was hit with a co-ordinated air strike before soldiers from the 101st moved in. "A direct firefight ensued with ground forces early this morning," the statement said. "One coalition soldier received minor wounds." Several Iraqis were said to have been killed.

The US Central Command also reported that an F-16 fighter-bomber had crashed south-west of Baghdad early yesterday. The pilot ejected safely and was rescued, but no information was given on the cause of the crash.

Closer to the capital, some 4,000 troops in Operation Peninsula Strike, the largest US military operation in Iraq since the end of active hostilities in April, have taken nearly 400 Iraqis prisoner this week.

Task Force Ironhorse, led by the US 4th Infantry Division and including air assault teams, ground attack squads, river patrol boats and local Iraqi police, has raided suspected guerrilla hideouts in towns along the Tigris river.

The attacks on US troops have been concentrated in Baghdad and two nearby areas - to the west around Ramadi and Fallujah, and to the north around Balad, Baquba, and Tikrit.

Reports have described the zone as the "Sunni triangle" - mostly areas where loyalty to Saddam and the Baath Party runs as deep as resentment towards US soldiers.

Officials say attacks on their forces are organised by Saddam loyalists, including remnants of the Fedayeen paramilitary units.

Local residents say the attacks have been fanned by the provocative behaviour of US troops, including raids on homes, rough treatment at checkpoints, and disrespect towards women. On the third day of Operation Peninsula Strike, thousands of US troops swept through the town of Duluiyah, 45 miles north of Baghdad, said Lieutenant Ryan Fitzgerald, a spokesman for US Central Command.

Between ten and 15 Iraqis have died in the operation, with four US soldiers wounded.

Of the several hundred people detained - including a major general and a colonel in the former Iraqi armed forces - at least 50 have been released. "If we believe they’re dangerous and will cause problems for the Iraqi people or coalition forces, we’ll keep them for further information," Lt Fitzgerald said.

The family of one Iraqi man claimed he was beaten to death by US troops; American commanders said he cut his head, then collapsed and died as they moved in to arrest him, apparently from a heart attack.

The New York Times yesterday reported that US interrogators were asking for information on Ali Hassan al-Majid, "Chemical Ali", one of Saddam’s most notorious henchman, infamous for ordering the use of chemical weapons against the Kurds. During the war, coalition commanders had intelligence suggesting al-Majid was killed in a bombing raid in April, but that hope has faded.

Meanwhile, the senior Iraqi police officer in eastern Baghdad was fired yesterday for links to the Baath Party, US officials said. This is the latest in a series of purges of the police force. Iraq’s interim US rulers have issued a decree banning senior Baath Party members from public office, but the vetting process has been time-consuming.