It's another deadly day in Iraq. In the latest attack, one U.S. military policeman was killed and two others were wounded by a bomb blast in the Baghdad area, the U.S. military said.

A military statement did not identify the dead soldier, who was from the 220th Military Police Brigade.

Late Thursday, three U.S. military police and two Iraqi policemen died in clashes at a Shiite Muslim cleric's headquarters in Karbala, 80 kilometres south of Baghdad.

The latest deaths bring to 101 the number of U.S. soldiers killed since U.S. President George Bush declared an end to major combat operations on May 1.

Rebel forces opposed to the U.S. presence in Iraq have launched daily attacks on American forces, using roadside bombs, landmines and rocket-propelled grenades to make their point. Iraqis seen as cooperating with U.S. forces have also come under attack.

The clashes, which happened around midnight near Imam Abbas Mosque, wounded another seven U.S. military police and five Iraqi police.

According to a statement by Maj. Mike Escudie of U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Fla., the clashes erupted with Iraqis as coalition military police investigated reports of armed men congregating on a road near the mosque after curfew.

The international patrol ordered the gunmen inside the offices to comply with the 9 p.m. curfew, in effect in Karbala since Tuesday, said Malik Kazim, a gunman involved in the firefight.

That was followed by a half-hour of intense gunfire that left dozens of bullet holes in the walls.

With a report from The Associated Press