lennart
09-08-03, 13:46
UK troops attacked in Basra
British troops have come under attack after being deployed on the streets of Basra on Saturday to quell fuel riots.
The trouble broke out after Iraqis took to the streets to protest about shortages of petrol and power.
They reportedly threw stones, attacked cars registered in nearby Kuwait and burned tyres after electricity failures caused huge queues in 50C heat at petrol stations.
British forces were hit by stone and fired into the air to keep back a crowd at one petrol station as, witnesses said.
The disturbances came as the UK Government indicated it is willing to go to the United Nations for more support in reconstructing Iraq.
An Army spokesman said violence broke out outside at least four petrol stations, but he could not confirm that soldiers opened fire.
"We are taking measures to control the crowd," he said.
"We are doing our best to bring about a normalisation of the situation."
About 10,000 British soldiers have been parts of southern Iraq since the US-British invasion in March.
The allies are understood to be preparing a resolution to go before the UN Security Council in a bid to encourage more countries to help with the war-torn Iraq's reconstruction.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3137779.stm
British troops have come under attack after being deployed on the streets of Basra on Saturday to quell fuel riots.
The trouble broke out after Iraqis took to the streets to protest about shortages of petrol and power.
They reportedly threw stones, attacked cars registered in nearby Kuwait and burned tyres after electricity failures caused huge queues in 50C heat at petrol stations.
British forces were hit by stone and fired into the air to keep back a crowd at one petrol station as, witnesses said.
The disturbances came as the UK Government indicated it is willing to go to the United Nations for more support in reconstructing Iraq.
An Army spokesman said violence broke out outside at least four petrol stations, but he could not confirm that soldiers opened fire.
"We are taking measures to control the crowd," he said.
"We are doing our best to bring about a normalisation of the situation."
About 10,000 British soldiers have been parts of southern Iraq since the US-British invasion in March.
The allies are understood to be preparing a resolution to go before the UN Security Council in a bid to encourage more countries to help with the war-torn Iraq's reconstruction.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3137779.stm