BAGHDAD — An American soldier was killed Tuesday when a roadside bomb struck his vehicle west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
The military also announced the deaths of four private contractors in a similar attack Monday in northern Iraq. Eight contractors were injured in that bombing, which occurred about 15 miles south of the city of Mosul.
Officials did not disclose the nationalities of the contractors, and local authorities had no additional information on the incident.
The military also provided no further information on the attack that killed the soldier.
The number of attacks nationwide has dropped to its lowest level since 2004, according to the U.S. military. But commanders regularly warn that militants remain capable of deadly strikes.
In other violence Tuesday, a bomb targeting a police patrol in central Baghdad killed one person and injured four others, police said. Elsewhere in the capital, at least 12 people were injured when guards opened fire to disperse a crowd of demonstrators seeking welfare payments from a government office.
An American soldier and an interpreter were injured when eight mortar rounds were fired at a joint security station with Iraqi forces in northeast Baghdad, the U.S. military said.
In the United States, a senior general will tell Congress today that U.S. aid for Iraq’s army and police units will be needed for the foreseeable future, although the security forces are becoming increasingly independent.
In written remarks prepared for a House Armed Services Committee hearing, Army Lt. Gen. James Dubik said Iraq’s forces have grown by more than a quarter in the past year, from 444,000 to 566,000 troops. They also are improving their ability to execute operations on their own.
But they still lack experienced military leaders and have yet to become proficient at training new recruits, added Dubik, who until last week led the Multi-National Security Transition Command in Iraq.
When he testified before Congress in January, Dubik said that Baghdad was on track to reach about 580,000 members by the end of the year but that they were still a long way from becoming self-sufficient.
Iraqi officials estimated to him that the country probably won’t be able to assume responsibility for internal security until sometime between 2009 and 2012 or defend its borders before 2018, Dubik said.
In this week’s testimony, Dubik recommends streamlining complex laws and regulations that he says have delayed U.S. military equipment purchased by Iraq. Iraq has ordered $2.7 billion in equipment but received just $1.4 billion.
Army Lt. Gen. Frank Helmick assumed control of the U.S. training command last week. Dubik is retiring after 37 years of service.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
