US helicopter shot down in Iraq

Anbar province in the west of Iraq is a stronghold for insurgents

Insurgents in Iraq have shot down a US helicopter, killing two soldiers, the US military in Iraq has said.

The attack happened during fighting on Sunday, south of the capital, Baghdad.

Two US soldiers were also killed in a roadside bombing in Baghdad on Sunday, and two US marines were killed by enemy fire in western Anbar province.

Elsewhere in Iraq, eight policemen were killed in clashes with a local armed Shia tribal group, near the southern city of Basra.

Fighting broke out when the tribesmen attacked a police station after their leader was killed by men wearing police uniforms.

Elsewhere, in Baladruz, east of Baghdad, gunmen killed four primary school teachers while they were on their way to work in a minibus.

There were unconfirmed reports of several other deaths in Iraq on Monday.

British injuries

Also in southern Iraq, several British soldiers were slightly injured when their base near al-Amara came under sustained mortar bombardment overnight.

The latest deaths of US servicemen brings to more than 2,400 the number of American soldiers killed in Iraq since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

On Sunday, 14 people were killed and six hurt in a double suicide attack near Baghdad airport. Across Iraq on Sunday, violence claimed the lives of at least 30 people.