At least five people were killed and 20 wounded on Wednesday in fierce clashes between insurgents and residents in a district in south of Fallujah City, some 50 km west of Baghdad, a local medical source told Xinhua.

"Five bodies and up to 20 injured have been received by Fallujah hospital as a result of the fierce clashes happened in Ameriyat al-Fallujah district," the source in Fallujah hospital said on condition of anonymity.

Moreover, a local police source said that the Iraqi police stepped in to end the fight that continued for several hours, and finally defeated the insurgents by the help of local residents.

The clashes also resulted in the blowing up of three houses in the area, the source said.

The source added that Ameriyat al-Fallujah district, 7 km south of Fallujah city, has been attacked frequently by insurgents belonging to al-Qaida organization in Iraq.

Violence rages in Iraq despite the government's measures to crack down on illegal militia and the U.S. decision to send 21,000 more soldiers to the war-torn country.

Source: Xinhua