The US military said it had killed an al-Qaida militant named Abu Islam and a number of other fighters in air strikes yesterday on Husayba and Karabila, close to Qaim on the Syrian border.

"Intelligence leads coalition forces to believe that Abu Islam and several of his associates were killed in the air strike," a spokeswoman said in Baghdad.

A hospital official in Qaim said at least 47 people died in the US-led strikes.

Mohammed al-Aani said 35 people died in one house and another 12 in a strike on a second house.

The US military said in a statement it had carried out three separate strikes, initially dropping four bombs on a house in Husayba.

"At approximately 6:20 AM (02:20 GMT), two bombs were dropped on a second house in Husayba, occupied by Abu Islam, a known terrorist," the statement said.

"Islam and several other suspected terrorists were killed in that attack."

A US spokeswoman said some of Abu Islam's associates then drove around 6 kilometres to a house in Karabila.

"Around 8:30 AM, a strike was conducted on the house in Karabila using two precision-guided bombs.

Several terrorists were killed in the strike but exact numbers are not known," the statement said.

Abu Islam is an alias used by several known Muslim militants.

In another development, one of the Sunni Arabs who helped write the Iraqi constitution called yesterday on a radical Shi'ite cleric and "all national forces" to join a coalition to defeat the charter in the October 15 referendum.

Saleh al-Mutlaq also criticized the election commission decision to prevent Iraqis living abroad from voting in the referendum and asked for this week's registration deadline to be postponed nationwide.

Tomorrow's deadline has already been extended a week in predominantly Sunni Anbar Province.

"It is the time for all national forces to form an anti-constitution front away from sectarian or regional loyalties," al-Mutlaq told reporters. "The time of differences and disputes is over. All sects are called to join a united front that work for the unity of Iraq."

He specifically asked radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr "and his patriotic" movement to join. Al-Sadr has opposed constitutional provisions to establish federated states in Iraq but is under pressure from mainstream Shi'ites to support the charter.

The election commission announced this month that unlike in the January 30 parliamentary balloting, Iraqis will not be able to vote outside the country in the referendum.

(China Daily August 31, 2005)