Sunday 24 October 2004, 14:56 Makka Time, 11:56 GMT

The corpses of 50 soldiers of Iraq's new army have been discovered northeast of the capital Baghdad.

Iraqi interior ministry spokesman Adnan Abd al-Rahman said the troops were believed to have been killed at around sunset on Saturday on a road about 150km northeast of Baghdad near the Iranian border.

The chief of the Jassan district near Baquba told Aljazeera: "We found around 50 dead bodies laying on the ground."

All those killed were Iraqis, Naaima al-Tamimi said.

A spokeswoman for the interim government Maha Malik quoted witnesses as saying armed fighters fired rocket-propelled grenades at two vehicles carrying the unarmed troops.

General Walid al-Azzawi, commander of the Diyala provincial police, said the bodies had been laid out in rows.

"After inspection, we found out that they were shot after being ordered to lay down on the earth," he said.

Al-Azzawi said they were all members of the new Iraqi army, and were training in the Kirkush military camp in Baladruz.

He said they were probably returning home for leave since many were from the southern provinces. An investigation is underway, al-Azzawi added.