Iraqi, Kuwaiti boats exchange gunfire

KUWAIT CITY -- An Iraqi vessel traded gunfire with two Kuwaiti coast guard boats Tuesday in northern Kuwaiti waters, near a border that has been tense but relatively peaceful since the 1991 Persian Gulf war.

Nobody was wounded by gunfire near the tiny island of Warba but one Kuwaiti crewman was hurt slightly when the coast guard speedboats collided, a Kuwaiti Interior Ministry statement said.

There was no immediate word from Iraqi officials on the incident.

The coast guard patrol was "caught by surprise" by the 10 a.m. attack, but returned fire until the small Iraqi boat retreated, an Interior Ministry official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Such incidents along the Kuwait-Iraq border are not unheard of since the Gulf War, but few have been reported in recent years.

The United States has thousands of troops in Kuwait as the region waits to see if another U.S.-led war against Iraq erupts.