Iraqi clashes with Shiite militants resume

Iraqi police said today clashes between Shiite militants and government security forces have resumed in at least two cities south of Baghdad.

The fighting in Nasiriyah and Mahmoudiya comes after the situation was calmed in Baghdad by a weekend curfew imposed on the capital’s residents.

Police said four people were killed and 14 wounded in today’s clashes in Nasiriyah.

Anger has been growing since the Iraqi government launched a crackdown against Shiite militia violence in the southern oil port of Basra earlier this week.

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s followers said security forces are abusing a ceasefire by his Mahdi Army militia to unfairly target them in raids.

The government said it is acting against criminal gangs.