US man among three seized in Iraq

Police in Baghdad are on alert after several bombings on Thursday

Police in Iraq say an American and his two Iraqi interpreters have been taken hostage near the city of Basra.

The police said gunmen in three cars had forced the men out of their vehicle in the Hartha area, north of Basra.

The identity of the American was not immediately clear; one report said he was a civilian contractor.

The US embassy said it was looking into the reports. Four Americans and an Austrian are missing after being seized in the Basra area several weeks ago.

In Baghdad, mortar rounds killed four civilians in a southern suburb and gunmen attacked an Iraqi army checkpoint to the north, killing four soldiers.

Clashes between Sunni and Shia Muslim militants were reported in the mixed western Amil district.

US and Iraqi forces deployed in the area to quell the fighting, which left one person dead.

In the mainly district Shia Sadr city, Iraqi special forces backed by US troops captured people described as the leaders of a kidnapping and murder cell.

Iraqi TV footage also showed the aftermath of what appeared to be a roadside bombing that targeted a US armoured vehicle in Falluja. US officials had no immediate comment.