Insurgents have launched a mortar attack on security forces belonging to an Iraqi general who has taken over security in the flashpoint town of Falluja, killing around 12 people.
Hospital officials said at least 12 people died and and 10 were injured in a mortar attack.
The general, Mohammed Latif, took over security in Falluja after fierce fighting between US troops and rebels in the town.
Falluja, a fiercely anti-American town 30 miles west of Baghdad, has been relatively quiet over the past few weeks after Latif and other generals offered to try and pacify the area for the US military.
US troops launched a major offensive on the town after four US contractors were killed by guerrillas and then mutilated and dragged through the streets by Falluja residents.
American troops still hold positions outside the town, within striking distance of Falluja, where Latif's forces are charged with manning checkpoints and helping in efforts to secure the handover of heavy weapons in rebel hands.