A suicide car bomber drove up to a US vehicle crowded with Iraqi children and detonated his vehicle today, killing one American soldier and at least seven Iraqi children, the US military said.

Iraqi troops are ready to take control of some cities as a first step toward sending home American and other foreign soldiers, Iraq’s prime minister said. But he rejected any timetable for a pull-out.

An office of the Arab channel Al-Jazeera, which has been criticised by the United States for its coverage of the Afghan conflict, was hit early during an air raid.