3 U.S. Soldiers Killed, Blast Rocks Iraqi Foreign Ministry

"A soldier from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment was killed and one was wounded in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack at 9:50 pm (1850 GMT)" in Ramadi, 110 kilometers west of Baghdad, said a statement by the U.S. Central Command.

Ramadi is a hotbed of anti-U.S. sentiments rising among local inhabitants seeking an end to occupation and return of stability to the war-ravaged country.

About an hour later, another roadside bombing killed two soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division and their Iraqi translator, the American military said.

"Two soldiers, attached to the 82nd Airborne Division, were killed and two were wounded in al-Haswah at approximately 10:40 pm (0740 GMT).

"An Iraqi interpreter was also killed in the attack," the military said in a statement.

The new deaths bring to 92 the number of U.S. soldiers killed in combat since U.S. President George W. Bush declared an and end to the major combat on May 1, according to an Agence France-Presse (AFP) account.

Meanwhile, three U.S. soldiers were also slightly wounded by a bomb blast as they patrolled Tikrit, Saddam’s home town 180 kilometers north of Baghdad, said Major Jossyln Aberle of the 4th Infantry Division.

A strong explosion also rocked northwestern Baghdad at about 09:00 local time (06:00 GMT), presumably aimed at a U.S. military convoy usually patrolling the area. No further details were available on the attack.

Two similar explosions were heard late Monday coming from the northern part of Baghdad, but neither Iraqi nor U.S. sources reported the incidents.