Suicide attack injures 58 US soldiers

A SUICIDE car bomber wounded 58 US soldiers and three Iraqis yesterday when he charged the gates of a US military base and blew up his vehicle as troops opened fire.

In Baghdad, a blast hit a Sunni mosque after morning prayers, killing three Iraqis and raising the spectre of further sectarian tension adding to instability in Iraq.

Near the flashpoint town of Falluja west of the capital, a US Kiowa helicopter made an emergency landing after coming under fire, an American military spokeswoman said. “Both crew walked away with minimal injuries,” the US spokeswoman said.