Special report: Tension escalates in Iraq

A U.S. ammunition depot at a base in southern Baghdad caught fire Tuesday night. Photo Gallery >>>

    BEIJING, Oct. 11 (Xinhuanet) -- A U.S. ammunition depot at a base in southern Baghdad caught fire Tuesday night, causing a series of explosions that jolted the capital, media reports said Wednesday.

    "The explosions are from ammunition 'cooking off'," the military said, adding that there was no immediate reports of U.S. casualties.

    It was still unclear whether the depot at Forward Operating Base Falcon was hit by an attack. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, Lt. Col. Christopher C. Garver, a U.S. military spokesman, said.

    Explosions from detonating tank and artillery ordnance and small-arms ammunition stored at the site went off for hours after the fire erupted.

    Large flames and smoke rose from the region, and flashes from the blasts and showers of sparks were visible on the horizon from several miles away in central Baghdad. The blasts came at times sporadically, at times in rapid succession, lasting into the night.

    A spokesman at the base said the blaze broke out in an ammunition holding area, where material was kept temporarily.

    Iraqi Interior Ministry Jawad al-Bolani said the blasts had shaken three neighborhoods close to the base but the situation was "under control." Enditem

    (Agencies)

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