A hospital in Hilla in Iraq, around 50 miles south of Baghdad, said they were among 33 people killed in attacks on Tuesday morning.

The US military said that as yet they have no evidence to prove the incident took place, but are still looking into it.

On Tuesday a statement from Saddam Hussein was read out on Iraqi television, but not by the Iraqi president himself.

Instead another member of the government told Iraqi people that they must fight against the coalition forces.

Other main points:

• US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says only surrender of the Iraqi government will end the war
• US Secretary of State Colin Powell travels to Turkey to build support for the war
• A British journalist, Matthew McAllester, working in Iraq is found safe and well a week after going missing