Suicide attack kills U.S. soldier, wounds 14

? Three suicide bombers in a furniture truck blew themselves up at the gates of a U.S. Army base Thursday, killing one soldier and wounding 14. It was the third suicide attack on American troops in Iraq this week.

Three wounded soldiers were evacuated from the headquarters of the 82nd Airborne Division west of Baghdad to a combat hospital and the other 11 wounded were treated and returned to duty, the U.S. military reported.

There were no U.S. fatalities in the previous two suicide attacks this week, indicating defenses were paying off.

Early Friday, three loud explosions boomed in the “Green Zone,” the compound housing the headquarters of the U.S.-led coalition, in central Baghdad.

A coalition spokesman said two projectiles hit “in the vicinity of the Green Zone,” causing minor damage to one building but no casualties. He couldn’t confirm whether the building was in the zone. Insurgents last month targeted the compound with mortars.

If the explosions in Baghdad on Friday occurred inside the Green Zone, it would be the first time in several weeks that the U.S. seat of power was hit.