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BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- An American soldier was shot and killed Thursday in a bold daylight attack on a Baghdad bridge, military officers said.
The soldier, who wasn't immediately identified, was killed when an unidentified Iraqi walked up to him and opened fire with a pistol, according to senior U.S. Army officers in Baghdad who had heard reports of the shooting.
The officers said the slain soldier belonged to the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment from Fort Polk, La. Calls to that regiment's public affairs officer here went unanswered Thursday night.
No further information was immediately available, and it was unclear what happened to the assailant. U.S. Central Command in Qatar said it was unaware of the incident.
U.S. forces report that they trade fire with armed Iraqis almost daily across the country. Still, an incident like Thursday's -- a brazen daytime attack, apparently at very close range -- is nonetheless highly unusual even in postwar Iraq.
On Wednesday, the military said, two Iraqis shot at reconnaissance elements of the 3rd Infantry Division with small arms and rocket-propelled grenades as they traveled north of Baghdad. The unit returned fire, the military said, killing one assailant.
Also Wednesday, near the northern town of Baiji, a convoy from the 4th Infantry Division came under rifle and machine-gun fire. The unit attacked the assailants' positions and captured five individuals, weapons, and other military, Central Command said. No Americans were injured.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
