Two US soldiers killed in Iraq

Two American troops have been killed and a third injured in separate attacks on their convoys in Iraq, the US military said today.

The first soldier was shot dead last night near Mahmudiyah, 15 miles south of Baghdad, spokeswoman Nicci Trent said.

Another soldier was killed and one wounded in a rocket-propelled grenade attack last night near Tikrit, 120 miles north of the capital.

The soldiers were evacuated to a nearby medical facility, but one of them later died, she said.

Another US soldier died yesterday in what the military described as a non-hostile gunshot incident.

An American soldier also died on Monday in another non-hostile gunshot incident near Balad, 55 miles north of Baghdad. Soldiers in the area said the soldier had taken his own life.

US forces have come under increasing attack by insurgents loyal to Saddam Hussein in recent weeks.