Iraqis fight Mahdi army

Fighters of the Mahdi army show their weapons Photograph: AP

Iraqi women hold anti-government placards and a banner depicting the radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr during a protest in the Kazimiyah neighborhood against the government's crackdown against militias Photograph: Hadi Mizban/AP

Shia fighters prepare a roadside bomb on the corner of a street in Basra Photograph: Essam Al-Sudani/AFP

Supporters of Moqtada al-Sadr burn a US flag during a demonstration in Sadr City Photograph: Shehab Ahmed/EPA

Children inspect the interior of a burnt vehicle in the Shia shrine city of Karbala Photograph: Mohammed Sawaf /AFP

Iraqi men arrive at a hospital mortuary in a truck carrying the coffins of slain relatives Photograph: Wissam Al-Okaili/AFP

Abbas Salman cries over the body of his brother Majed during his funeral in Najaf. Majed was killed during clashes between the Mahdi army and government forces backed by the Americans in Hillah Photograph: Alaa Al-Marjani/AP

An elderly man rests at his home in Sadr City after he was wounded during fierce battles between Shia fighters and Iraqi forces Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaaye/AFP

Fighters loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr raise their weapons next to a burnt Iraqi police vehicle after clashes in Basra Photograph: Haider Al-Assadee/EPA

An Iraqi police commando escorts Shia militiamen into a military base in the central city of Hilla Photograph: AFP

Police commandos guard detained militiamen at a military base in Hilla Photograph: AFP

A youth rests at a hospital after he was wounded during the fierce fighting Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP

Youths use buckets to tackle flooding in their neighbourhood after waterpipes were hit in shelling Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP

Iraqis inspect destruction in Basra Photograph: Essam Al-Sudani /AFP

People carry the coffins of victims of the clashes between the Mahdi army and US forces in Sadr City Photograph: Karim Kadim /AP