The mayor of an Iraqi city has been killed after some residents reportedly accused him of cooperating with American forces.
The US military confirms that Mohammed Nayil al-Jurayfi, mayor of Hadithah, was shot and killed today (Wednesday) while driving through the city in his car. The attack also killed the mayor's son.
Hadithah lies northwest of Baghdad, in a Sunni Muslim area that has been particularly hostile to the US-led occupation of Iraq.
Al-Jazeera television says local residents had accused the mayor of working with the Americans. It was not immediately clear if Mohammed Nayil al-Jurayfi had been appointed by a US military commander, as is common in post-war Iraq.
Elsewhere, one American soldier was killed and three others wounded today (Wednesday) when their convoy was attacked in the western part of Baghdad. Military officials tell VOA the convoy of about 30 military vehicles came under small arms fire and was attacked with rocket-propelled grenades.
And, a surface-to-air missile was fired at -- but missed -- a US military cargo plane as it was landing at Baghdad airport
In a separate incident, witnesses say at least two US soldiers were wounded by an explosion that wrecked their all-terrain vehicle on a road outside the Iraqi capital.
The attacks come on the anniversary of the date in 1979 when Saddam Hussein seized power in Iraq. Thursday marks the day Saddam's Baath Party seized power in 1968. The US military has been concerned that Saddam loyalists will commemorate the dates by stepping up attacks against U-S troops.
Hostile fire has killed at least 33 US soldiers since May first, when the United States declared major combat in the country to be over.