Car Bomb Kills Three Us Soldiers and Two Iraqis at Checkpoint

Three American special forces soldiers and two Iraqis were killed yesterday when a car bomb exploded at a checkpoint in central Iraq.

A pregnant Iraqi woman stepped out of the car as it approached the checkpoint and began "screaming in fear", US military officials at central command in Qatar said. Moments later the car exploded, killing three soldiers as well as the pregnant woman and the driver. Two American soldiers were injured.

The incident happened on Thursday close to the Haditha dam, north-west of Baghdad, which was taken by special forces to prevent it being destroyed by the regime.

Some US officials said it was a suicide attack, but it was unclear whether the woman and driver had been forced to take the car to the checkpoint.

Last Saturday a man posing as a taxi driver apparently blew himself up in a car at a checkpoint near Najaf killing four US soldiers. Some reports citing western intelligence have suggested the bomb was detonated by remote control and was not a suicide attack.

After that incident, commanders told soldiers to stand further away from cars as they approached checkpoints. On Monday, US troops shot dead at least seven women and children when their car failed to stop as it approached a checkpoint near Najaf.