Suicide bombers attempted boat attacks against Iraqi oil facilities Saturday, killing two U.S. sailors, one day after 29 Iraqis and four American soldiers were killed elsewhere in the war-devastated nation.
U.S. officials say the bombers used three boats and were intercepted near terminals off Basra, in the northern Persian Gulf.
It was the first maritime attack against oil facilities since U.S.-led forces invaded Iraq last year. The U.S. sailors were killed when one of the boats exploded as they approached to board. Authorities say the boats caused no major damage to the oil terminals.
Also on Saturday, a roadside bomb that hit a bus south of Baghdad killed at least 13 Iraqis. A mortar barrage struck a crowded market in the capital's biggest Shiite neighborhood, Sadr City, killing at least seven.
And north of Baghdad, five U.S. soldiers were killed and six injured when two rockets slammed into their base in Taji, also known as the Green Zone. Nine other Iraqis were killed in Karbala and Tikrit.
Despite Saturday's deadly violence, U.S. Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt says the number of daily attacks has fallen to about 40, half as many as in the first two weeks of April.
In Washington, the Defense Department said the U.S. military death toll in Iraq stands at just over 700, including at least 100 this month, with nearly 3,900 wounded during the 13 months of fighting in the Gulf nation.