At least 22 Iraqis, eight US troops and one Salvadoran soldier died in one of the worst days of violence in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein

Gunmen opened fire on the Spanish garrison near the holy city of Najaf today during a huge demonstration by followers of an anti-US Shi’ite Muslim cleric.

At least four Iraqis, including two soldiers, died and 30 people were injured during a protest outside a Spanish military garrison in the southern holy city of Najaf today, witnesses and a hospital worker said.