Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki today said there is no need to set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Speaking during a visit to Tokyo, a supporter of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, al-Maliki said the timeline for U.S. troops' departure will be determined by the Iraqi government's confidence in the handover process.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says restricting U.S. military operations in Iraq could unleash massive bloodshed among the country's warring factions. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from Washington, where leaders of the opposition-led Congress are threatening to cut off most forms of military spending in Iraq if President Bush does not agree to a timetable for withdrawing U.S. forces from the country.

A car bomb exploded in the Iraqi city of Al-Ramadi today, killing at least 25 people and spraying the area with chlorine. It was the latest insurgent attack using the deadly chemical. More than 30 people were reported injured.

Four British soldiers and a civilian interpreter have been killed in a roadside bomb blast in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. British military spokesman Lt. Col. Kevin Stratford-Wright said a fifth soldier was wounded in the blast. The spokesman said insurgents also opened small arms fire on the British patrol.

Iraqi witnesses say an American helicopter has crashed after coming under fire south of Baghdad. There was no immediate word about casualties. And the U.S. military said it was checking.

Iraqi police say gunmen have ambushed a bus carrying workers of a power plant in northern Iraq, killing at least five people. Police say the attack took place Wednesday near the town of Hawija, about 70 kilometers southwest of the oil city of Kirkuk.

Iraqi officials say multiple bombings have killed at least 40 people in the mainly Shi'ite town of Khalis, north of Baghdad. Police say coordinated attacks occurred within minutes of each other in the town Thursday.

Iraq's vice president says neither Iraq nor Western interests will benefit from a "short-notice" withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq. Tariq al-Hashimi has welcomed a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops, but said it must take place when Iraqi troops are ready to handle security on their own.

The U.S. military says American and Iraqi forces have killed 13 insurgents in raids Wednesday in Iraq. The military says eight insurgents were killed in an hours-long battle between troops and al-Qaida in Iraq fighters near the town of Amiriyah, in restive al-Anbar province.

Former Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan was hanged early today in Baghdad. Ramadan is the fourth senior official of Saddam Hussein's former regime to be executed.

As Iraqis mark the fourth anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion, many people are expressing frustration and fear about the future of their country. VOA's Margaret Besheer spoke to Iraqis in the northern Kurdish city of Irbil, where many have gone to flee the violence of Baghdad.

Iraqi authorities say nearly 20 people have been killed in separate bombings Monday. Police say three car bombs and a mortar attack in different parts of the northern city of Kirkuk killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 35 others.