Police Find 36 Bodies in River South of Baghdad

Police said the bodies of 36 shooting victims had been found south of Baghdad, and several Iraqis died overnight in clashes in the southern part of the country.

Provincial police chief Brig. Gen. Abdel Haneen Hamoud said by telephone that the bodies of 36 men were found in a shallow river, each with a single bullet wound to the head.

In the south, the clashes between rival Shiite groups apparently were triggered by differences over a draft constitution.

Supporters of cleric Muqtada Sadr, who has denounced the draft, clashed with police and rival Shiite militias in the holy city of Najaf and other towns.

At least six people were killed and dozens wounded in Najaf late Wednesday, hospital staff said.

In Amarah, near Basra, a police officer was killed in dawn fighting with Sadr followers who had occupied the premises of the rival Badr Brigades, a local government official said.

Sadr, who led two uprisings last year, sounded conciliatory at a news conference Thursday morning in Najaf.

He thanked Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafari for calling for calm and Shiite solidarity and for positive comments Jafari made about him.