US and Iraqi troops battled insurgents house-to-house yesterday, the third day of an assault against al-Qaida-led militants in a town near the Syrian border as the US command reported the first American death in the operation.

US and Iraqi troops battled house-to-house with insurgents today, the third day of a major offensive against al-Qaida insurgents in a town near Iraq’s border with Syrian, and the US command reported the first American death in the operation.

Insurgents armed with Kalashnikov rifles and rocket-propelled grenades battled about 3,500 US and Iraqi troops today on the streets of Husaybah in the second day of an offensive to rout al-Qaida from its stronghold along the Syrian border.