Officials say a fierce battle between Iraqi troops and Shi'ite militiamen in the south of the country has left at least 34 people dead.

The fighting began late Sunday in the Shi'ite majority city of Diwaniyah. Authorities say Iraqi security forces carried out raids there aimed at collecting illegal weapons from militiamen of the Mahdi Army.

Hospital officials say 25 Iraqi soldiers were killed in the fighting, along with seven civilians and at least two Shi'ite militiamen.

The Mahdi Army fighters are loyal to radical Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who leads a faction of the Iraqi government. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has vowed to disband militias as part of his national reconciliation plan.

Earlier Monday, a suicide car bomber blew himself up outside the Interior Ministry in Baghdad, killing 16 people and wounding more than 40.

Violence in the southern city of Basra, the northern city of Kirkuk and other parts of Iraq on Sunday killed more than 60 people.

The U.S. military in Iraq says eight American soldiers also were killed Sunday in several attacks.

In another development, British Defense Minister Des Browne met with his Iraqi counterpart, Abdul-Qader Mohammed Jassim al-Mifarji, in Baghdad.

Browne was expected to discuss plans for British troops to hand over security duties in southern Iraq to Iraqi troops.