The films have long been available in Baghdad shops and jihadist websites, the New York Times reported, but had made their way on to more mainstream sites courtesy of users in America and other countries who found them elsewhere on the internet.

Some said they were motivated to post the clips by antiwar beliefs, while others wanted to show elements of the conflict not portrayed in the media.

But the videos, many showing sniper attacks against Americans and roadside bombs exploding under US military vehicles, have outraged some users.

YouTube told the newspaper it had removed dozens of the videos from its archives in recent weeks and suspended the accounts of some who posted them in reaction to complaints.

One YouTube user in Britain, whose account name is facez0fdeath, said he posted a video of a sniper attack . . . which was removed earlier this week after being viewed 33,000 times . . . because he felt it was "information the UK news was unwilling to tell".

He added: "I was physically sickened upon seeing it. I am wholly opposed to any form of censorship."

Another YouTube user, who posted more than 40 videos of violence in Iraq, said he was a 19-year-old in Istanbul motivated by "anti-war feelings and Muslim beliefs (the religion of peace)".

While in some videos the troops do not appear to have been seriously injured, others show soldiers bleeding on the ground and troops being loaded onto medical evacuation helicopters.

Around 50 videos of combat in Iraq viewed by the New York Times had been removed in recent days, the newspaper said, many after it began inquiries.

Sites such as YouTube and Google Video also contain a growing number of clips taken by American soldiers themselves.