The military also said another U.S. soldier was killed and six were wounded in a fire at a small arms range in Baghdad. A spokesman had no information on the cause of the blaze.

The military said the soldier in the Marines' zone had been killed on Thursday but had no more information. The Marines are responsible for a mainly Shi'ite Muslim area south of the capital which includes the holy cities of Najaf and Kerbala.

The death brought to 64 the number of U.S. troops killed in action since the start of May.

U.S. officers say loyalists of ousted President Saddam Hussein and some foreign Muslim militants are behind the wave of attacks on occupying troops in Iraq.