One US soldier was killed and another injured today in Baghdad's Sadr City.
US forces killed dozens of Iraqi fighters near Najaf overnight, hours after Washington issued an ultimatum to Moqtada al-Sadr to clear his militia from mosques in the holy city.
Local television said today that wounded people were dying for lack of blood, and issued an urgent appeal for donors.
About 64 militiamen were killed, 57 of them in a night-time air strike after US forces spotted an anti-aircraft gun.
An AC-130 gunship, which can spew cannon fire and machinegun fire across wide areas, was used.
In a second flashpoint, the Sunni town of Fallujah, local police took to the streets in force today as a deadline expired for guerrillas to hand in heavy weapons.
US Marines had said they would join police on patrols, but they did not, and Iraqi police said there would be talks tomorrow on joint patrols.
The arrival of American troops inside Fallujah could still spark major fighting.
Hundreds of Iraqis have died in Fallujah, along with many Americans, in one of the bloodiest conflicts in a year.
Spanish troops out by end May
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said today that the last of Spain's troops will have left Iraq by 27 May.
He told parliament that the Plus Ultra II brigade, which had been in Iraq since December, had now pulled out.
The only Spanish troops remaining there are support and logistics troops who will carry out the withdrawal.
Ex-diplomats slam Mid-East policies
Overnight, more than 50 former senior British diplomats sharply criticised British and American foreign policy on Iraq and on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
They sent a letter to the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, calling on him either to use his influence on the US or to stop backing policies they describe as doomed to failure.
Among the signatories are seven former ambassadors to the Middle East, as well as former envoys to the UN and Moscow.
Today, Mr Blair told reporters Britain had sufficient troops in the region.
