Eight Iraqi policemen die in friendly fire incident

AMERICAN troops were accused of killing eight Iraqi policemen and a Jordanian security guard in a friendly fire incident during a car chase yesterday.

Injured policemen said an American patrol opened fire on them as they chased a highway bandit in the volatile city of Fallujah.

But the US military said an American soldier and five "neutral individuals" were wounded in an attack near the city's Jordanian field hospital, 30 miles west of Baghdad.

The military said US soldiers were fired on with a rocket-propelled grenade and small arms.

It gave no other details and it was not even certain the US statement was issued about the same event.

In a separate fight in Ramadi, 30 miles west of Fallujah, two American soldiers were killed and seven wounded during a raid in the early hours.

No other details were given.

In the apparent friendly fire incident, 25 policemen in two pick-up trucks and a car were chasing a white BMW known to have been used by highway bandits.

As the chase neared the Jordanian Hospital, the police turned around after losing sight of their quarry.

The American patrol at the location opened fire, said Asem Mohammed, 23, a police sergeant who was among the injured.

"We were chasing a white BMW with bandits. We turned around in front of the Jordanian Hospital and some American forces started shooting at us," he said.

Jordanian armed forces guarding the hospital apparently also opened fire when the Americans began shooting, catching the Iraqi police part of the Fallujah Protection Force in a vicious crossfire.

After the incident, heavily armed Jordanian security guards examined a bullet-ridden building in the hospital compound. The Fallujah area has been one of the most dangerous for American soldiers and support for Saddam Hussein runs strong.