KARBALA, Aug 28: Police ordered hundreds of thousands of pilgrims to leave Karbala on Tuesday after a fierce gunbattle between Iraqi security forces and gunmen near two of the shrines.

A source at Karbala’s al-Hussein Hospital said 28 people had been killed and 144 wounded. A senior security source in Baghdad said 25 people had been killed, mostly policemen. Interior ministry spokesman Brig-Gen Abdul Kareem Khalaf told state television that reinforcements were being rushed to Karbala from Baghdad and neighbouring provinces. He said 50 people had been killed and wounded in the violence.

The fighting appeared to be between gunmen loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, possibly members of his Mehdi Army militia, and police linked to the rival political movement, the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council.—Reuters