US and British warplanes bombed a city in southern Iraq, leaving two people dead and 19 wounded, three of them seriously, an Iraqi military spokesman said Saturday.
Earlier, hospital officials said one person had died and 20 were wounded, with three of the victims in a serious condition.
Witnesses said the planes struck a residential neighborhood, a grain silo, a construction materials warehouse and a building of the traffic department late Friday.
"The airplanes fired 10 missiles, some of which struck buildings with direct hits," one witness told an AFP correspondent at the scene.
Three large craters could be seen near the damaged buildings, as well as downed power lines.
One of the Iraqis who was killed, Ihssan Sabri, 25, was buried later Saturday in the presence of the local governor, Ayyad Khalil Zaki and other dignitaries, the correspondent said.
Of the 19 people wounded, 16 were treated in hospital and released. Details were not given on the nature of the injuries to those listed in serious condition.
As-Samawah is 275 kilometers south of Baghdad.
At a news conference in Baghdad, Trade Minister Mohammad Mehdi Saleh said "the vile Americans and Britons have struck again at the people's food."
"Food warehouses have been one of the main targets of the Americans and Britons since the embargo was imposed, and they strike without hesitation."
The attack was "a kind of US revenge for the visit of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and came in spite of Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid's announcement today that he will visit Iraq," Saleh added.
Wahid made the announcement Saturday during a meeting with Chavez in Jakarta -- AS-SAMAWAH, Iraq (AFP)
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