Insurgent gangs target Baghdad Westerners

Westerners in Baghdad have been warned that guerrillas are planning to start a two-week long campaign of murderous violence in the capital.

Sunni militants fighting US troops around the city of Fallujah are planning to join forces with Shi'ite militiamen to bring mayhem to the country's main city.

They have circulated anonymous letters throughout Baghdad warning Iraqis to keep their shops and businesses shut and to stay away indoors for the coming fortnight.

The threats are being taken seriously by Western security firms in the capital and come as hundreds of foreign contractors are leaving the country in the wake of a spate of hostagetaking. Most of the recent insurgency and kidnappings have taken place around provincial towns in the west and south, allowing the capital to function much as normal.