BAGHDAD, March 23 (Xinhuanet) -- The US military denied on Wednesday an earlier report about airstrikes in two cities west of Baghdad.

    "There were no air operations in the cities" of Haditha and Haqlaniyah, both situated in the volatile province of Anbar, the US military said.

    Local residents and medics told Xinhua earlier that the airstrikes took place after the US forces were attacked by insurgents near the Haditha hospital and four people were wounded in the raids.

    They also said the US soldiers detained the hospital guards for several hours.

    Meanwhile, witnesses said a US base in Ramadi was attacked with mortar rounds and US soldiers immediately sealed off the roads leading to the city.

    Iraq's Anbar province, which includes restive cities of Ramadi,Falluja and Haditha, has long been a hotbed of insurgency against the US troops and the country's fledgling security forces. Enditem