Wednesday, December 22 2004 09:19 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Baghdad: An artillery attack on a US and Iraqi base near the northern city of Mosul today (Dec 21, 2004) killed 22 people and wounded 50, military sources said.

"At 12 PM today an explosion occurred at a US military installation in Mosul causing multiple casualties," a military statement said. "The cause of the explosion is under investigation."

At the Pentagon, a Defence Department official speaking on condition of anonymity said the rocket and missile attack, which was believed to have hit a dining hall, killed 22 people and injured 50.

It was unknown whether the casualties were US or Iraqi personnel, the official said. The base is used jointly by the US military and the interim Iraqi Government's security forces.

Witnesses said the shelling occurred at the Al Ghizlani military camp, about 5 kms south of the city.

The US Army's Task Force Olympia is based in this predominantly Sunni Muslim city. Mosul, Iraq's third-largest city, was the scene of the deadliest single incident for US troops since the attack on Iraq last year.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of students demonstrated in the centre of the city, demanding that US troops cease breaking into homes and mosques in the city.