U.S., British fighters strike sites in Iraq

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- U.S. and British warplanes hit two anti-aircraft sites in southern Iraq on Thursday after coming under fire, a U.S. Air Force spokesman said.

Iraq said the allied strike targeted "civil and service installations" in the provinces of Basra and Nasiriya.

Maj. Brett Morris, spokesman for the Joint Task Force Southwest Asia, said the planes struck Iraqi surface-to-air sites in Basra and Shahban, about 245 miles south of Baghdad.

An unidentified Iraqi military spokesman told the official Iraqi News Agency there were "signs that two enemies warplanes have been possibly hit."

Morris, however, said all aircraft, including U.S. F-16s and British Tornadoes, returned safely to bases.

It was the second attack in a week in southern Iraq. The Iraqi military said a U.S.-British airstrike on Tuesday at Iraqi air defense installations in the southern Al-Muthana province injured four people.

In London, the Ministry of Defense said in a statement that damage assessment from Thursday's attack was under way, but initial indications were that "it was successful."

"There is no reason to believe any civilians suffered injury," the statement said.

Morris said Iraq had become "very active" in challenging coalition aircraft patrolling the southern "no-fly" zone.

Since the beginning of the year, Iraq has fired more than 400 times at coalition aircraft compared to 300 times for all of last year, U.S. officials have said.

"This is a matter of concern for us ... but our pilots are wide awake to stay on top of their task," Morris said.

Iraqi air defense targets in southern Iraq have come under attack with increased regularity.

The United States and Britain set up the "no-fly" zones after the Gulf war to protect anti-government forces in the north and the south.

Iraq considers the "no-fly" zones illegal and has vowed to shoot down any coalition planes.