The deaths followed the killing of eight marines over the weekend in the restive western Al-Anbar province.

Seven people died in a Baghdad suicide attack on Monday and 19 more were wounded, many seriously, when a car bomb exploded at a checkpoint outside the highly fortified Green Zone, hospital sources said.

Two mortar rounds also landed in the frequently targeted Green Zone, which houses Iraq's interim government and foreign embassies, including the US mission.

In northern Baghdad, three US soldiers were wounded Monday, the first anniversary of the capture of Saddam Hussein, when their convoy was attacked by a suicide car bomb, the US army said.