The Iraqi police patrols on Wednesday found 15 unidentified bodies in the restive city of Fallujah, some 50 km west of Baghdad, a local police source said.

"Our patrols found 15 bodies in Fallujah City on Wednesday," the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The bullet-riddled bodies were bound and blindfolded, showing signs of torture, he said, adding that the Iraqi police have transformed all the bodies to morgue.

In a separate incident, the US forces stormed into al-Annaz neighborhood in eastern Fallujah early in the morning, detaining 10 people, the source said.

Furthermore, six mortar rounds landed around midday on US forces headquarters in al-Saqlawyia neighborhood in western Fallujah, the source added, without providing further information.

The US military did not confirm the incidents.

The almost daily mortar rounds, gruesome bodies' findings, assassinations and explosions in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities were seen as a major setback for the Iraqi government's efforts to stem the recurred violence and achieve national reconciliation.

(Xinhua News Agency February 1, 2007)