Shooting has broken out in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf where gunmen loyal to the Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr had agreed a truce with US forces.
A battle appears to have begun when US jeeps approached the city's vast cemetery and were repelled by Sadr's militia.
Hospital sources say four Iraqis were wounded.
Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has said his government will decide within the next few weeks whether or not to send more troops to Iraq.
Britain has 8,500 soldiers in Iraq and there is speculation that as many as 3,000 more may be sent.
However, speaking in an interview on BBC Television, Mr Blair said he hoped that, by the end of 2005, a large number of British soldiers could be sent home.
‘I would want, certainly by the end of next year, to have a substantial reduction in the British troop commitment,’ Mr Blair said.
