BAGHDAD, Iraq — U.S.-led forces raided a house near a volatile city northeast of Baghdad today, killing nine people, including two children, the military said.

The raid was staged in the area where terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed and the military said the targeted terrorists had ties to senior al-Qaida leaders across Iraq and were involved in helping foreign fighters.

Local residents accused the Americans of targeting civilians and a man wearing a white dishdasha held up the charred body of a toddler whose head had been blown in half. The Iraqis screamed "Allahu akbar" or "God is Great" as they loaded two wooden coffins onto pickup trucks.

AP Television News footage also showed the burned-out shells of vehicles and a devastated house with a large hole in the roof.

The military said coalition forces received machine-gun fire from a rooftop.

"Coalition aircraft supporting the ground force immediately suppressed the enemy fire, killing seven," the military said in a statement.