British fight 1,000 troops for Basra control

BRITISH forces battled more than 1,000 die-hard Iraqi loyalists for control of Basra yesterday , coming to the defence of inhabitants who rose up against President Saddam Hussein in the streets of Iraq’s second-largest city.

Inhabitants of the mostly Shi'ite Muslim city started attacking members of Saddam's Ba'ath Party and other Iraqi fighters, who responded by firing mortars on Tuesday at their own people, the British military said.

The British, in turn, shelled the mortar positions and bombed Ba'ath headquarters. British Prime Minister Tony Blair, promised backing for the insurgents yesterday.