Meanwhile, in Iraq, mourners buried eight civilians killed in a US air strike in the town of Baiji, north of Baghdad. The victims were shepherds, including two children and an elderly man. A relative said they had been fleeing on foot when they came under US attack.

Unidentified Relative: “The Americans raided our houses and attacked us with sound grenades. People started fleeing with their children. Then the aircraft started bombing people in a street along the farm.”