Gunmen have assassinated an Iraqi judge in the capital, Baghdad, police say.
Qais Hashim Shameri was shot dead as he left his home and unconfirmed reports say his son was also killed while his driver was injured.
The attack follows the recent killings of other Baghdad figures, including the governor and the deputy police chief.
The US military has announced the death of one of its soldiers in a roadside bomb attack and the death of five others in a traffic accident.
Militant group Ansar al-Sunna claimed responsibility for the killing of the judge and his son on a website.
"The heroes ambushed a senior leader of infidelity and apostasy," read a statement quoted by Reuters news agency.
The continuing violence comes as Iraq counts down to its election on Sunday, with officials fearing a rash of attacks on polling day.
'Suspicious manner'
The roadside bomb attack came on Monday in western Baghdad as an American patrol was passing, the US military said.
Five soldiers died and two were injured in a "vehicle accident" near Khan Bani Saad, north of Baghdad, on the same day.
No further details about the incident were given by US military officials.
The deaths take the number of US soldiers killed since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 to more than 1,370, according to Pentagon figures.
Australian forces in Baghdad shot and injured an Iraqi man outside the Australian embassy in Baghdad on Monday.
The man was shot after he parked a vehicle near a barracks and "despite being given repeated warnings... continued to act in a suspicious manner", an Australian military statement said.
The same complex was targeted last week in a bomb attack that killed two Iraqis and wounded two Australian soldiers.
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