According to the US Defense Department, the latest deaths bring to 117 the number of American soldiers killed in combat in Iraq since President George W. Bush declared an end to major fighting on May 1.

Meanwhile, seven Ukrainian troops were wounded in the first ambush of a multinational unit in the Polish sector south of Baghdad, coalition officials said.

In Baghdad, Colonel William Darley said the average number of anti-US attacks had reached 33 a day in the past week.

This is more than a 50 per cent increase over levels of early September.

By mid-October that number, reported by the US command here, had reached about 26 a day.

The Abrams tank was disabled when it was struck by a land mine or a roadside bomb on Tuesday night during a patrol near Balad, 70 km north of Baghdad, said Major Josslyn Aberle, a spokeswoman for the 4th Infantry Division.

A third crewman was evacuated to a US hospital in Germany, she said.

It was the first M1 Abrams main battle tank destroyed since the end of major combat May 1, military officials said.

The latest attacks, including a night-time mortar barrage in Baghdad, followed a day of violence in which insurgents targeted American forces and Iraqis who work with the occupation authorities.

Yesterday, Baghdad police commander Major General Hassan al-Obeid announced new measures, including additional 24-hour checkpoints and special patrols, to heighten security in the capital, according to coalition-run Iraqi television.

The proliferation of attacks on Iraqis allied with the occupation bodes ill for attempts by the US-led authorities to persuade more Iraqis to join in administering the country and play a greater role in providing security.

Resistance forces have targeted several prominent figures, including Aquila al-Hashimi, a member of the Governing Council, who was fatally shot on Sept 20.

In Geneva, the international Red Cross said it would cut back on its international staff in Iraq, but remain in the country for the sake of the Iraqi people despite Monday's suicide bombing on its Baghdad headquarters.

At Camp Babylon, a spokesman for the multinational division said the attack on the Ukrainians occurred when two of their armored personnel carriers rolled over landmines near Suwayrah about 65 km southeast of Baghdad.

After the vehicles were disabled, unidentified gunmen opened fire on the disembarked soldiers, the spokesman said on condition of anonymity.

In Baghdad, half a dozen mortar rounds exploded late Tuesday in an upscale Jadriya neighborhood across the Tigris River from the US-led coalition headquarters but caused no damage or casualties, the US military said yesterday.

- Nampa-AP

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