Four people were killed in shelling in militant- occupied Fallujah city of Iraq, officials said on Thursday.
Areas in south Fallujah were hit by shelling late on Wednesday, killing four people and injuring 18 others, sources told a foreign news agency.
Residents of the affected area have blamed the army while defence officials deny the allegations of military involvement.
Ramadi was also hit with mortars but no casualty was reported.
Several parts of Ramadi and all of Fallujah, both west of Baghdad, have for weeks been in the hands of anti-government fighters, including those affiliated with the Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has ordered an aggressive assault on militants with security officials claiming killing more than 50 fighters in recent airstrikes in Anbar province
Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama pressed the Iraqi government for taking “political measures” along with security operations to fight militancy.
Obama on Wednesday met with Iraq’s parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, a prominent Sunni politician, and “encouraged Iraq’s leaders to continue dialogue to address the legitimate grievances of all communities through the political process,” a White House statement said.
“Both sides agreed on the need for both security and political measures to combat terrorism,” it added.
Diplomats and foreign leaders, UN chief Ban Ki-moon, have pushed Maliki to do more to work with Iraq’s Sunni community and pursue political reconciliation.
But while the government has made some concessions in recent months to the disaffected minority, it has mostly focused on wide-ranging security operations.
Soldiers, police and SWAT forces joined forces with tribal allies in an offensive that continued on Wednesday against gunmen holding several neighbourhoods of Ramadi.
Shelling kills four in militant-held city of Iraq
