BAGHDAD, Iraq - Assailants fired rocket-propelled grenades against a civilian bus and a U.S. military convoy, wounding at least four Americans, two of them seriously, a U.S. military spokesman said Monday.
In the first of two attacks, "an enemy individual fired a rocket-propelled grenade at 4th Infantry Division soldiers during an attempted ambush (Sunday), hitting a civilian bus that was passing a military convoy near the town of Mushahidah," about 15 miles north of Baghdad, a U.S. military statement said.
At least two Americans were seriously wounded in the attack, said Capt. John Morgan, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad.
Soldiers returned fire "to protect the convoy and the civilian bus," said a statement from U.S. Central Command, adding that "the number of casualties on the civilian bus are unknown at this time."
Also Sunday, assailants fired rocket-propelled grenades on a military convoy near Ad Dujayl, a town 35 miles north of Baghdad, lightly wounding two soldiers, Morgan said.
"The convoy returned fire, and the attackers fled the area. A quick reactionary force was dispatched to provide security for the convoy and pursue the attackers," the Centcom statement said.
The incidents were the latest in a series of attacks against U.S. occupation forces in Iraq. In response, the military has begun large-scale sweeps around the country in search of insurgents and weapons.
"Supporters of the former regime continue to put innocent civilians at risk. Coalition forces will continue to isolate and defeat remaining pockets of resistance that are delaying the transition to a peaceful and stable Iraq," the Centcom statement said.