2 US soldiers die in Iraq

Two more American soldiers have been killed and another injured in a fresh wave of attacks in Iraq.

The pair died in separate incidents as violence continues to escalate against US forces by rebels loyal to ousted dictator Saddam Hussein.

One of the soldiers was shot dead near the city of Mahmudiyah, 15 miles south of Baghdad, a spokeswoman for the military said.

The second died in a rocket propelled grenade attack near Tikrit, 120 miles north of Baghdad, which left one of his colleagues injured.

American troops are also understood to have come under mortar fire around the city of Ramadi but it is believed no-one was injured.

The efforts of US forces to return security to the country have been hampered by an increasing number of attacks against them in recent weeks - particularly in the northern region known as the "Sunni triangle" - a hotbed of Saddam loyalists.