Baghdad, Iraq ? A car bomb exploded outside the home of a tribal leader in a city west of the capital on Wednesday, killing one child in yet another attack aimed at a U.S. ally.

The explosion in Ramadi targeted the house of Sheik Amer Ali Suleiman, according to his cousin, Yasser Ali. Suleiman was not injured, but at least one child was killed, he said.

Suleiman is a leader of the Duleim tribe, one of the largest Sunni Muslim tribes in Iraq. He is a member of the city council and is close to the Americans.

A U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad confirmed there was a car bombing, but had no further details. The press office of the 82nd Airborne Division, which is based in Ramadi, was not answering its telephone.

Ramadi, 60 miles west of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, is part of the “Sunni Triangle” where anti-U.S. attacks are concentrated. Rebels have repeatedly attacked police stations and Iraqis perceived to be cooperating with the occupation.

Meanwhile, military officials said Wednesday that American jets unleashed some of the biggest bombs in the U.S. inventory against suspected insurgent targets in central Iraq.

A new offensive against rebels, dubbed “Operation Iron Hammer” began Tuesday and continued Wednesday with sounds of firing in the capital. An American general said the offensive was to intimidate the guerrillas by “planting the seeds of doubt in their minds” that they can ever overcome U.S. power.

Iraqi children stand next to their destroyed home in Tikrit, Iraq. Troops from the 4th Infantry Division fired mortars Tuesday on areas allegedly used by insurgents to launch mortar and rocket attacks against coalition forces.

Two 2,000-pound, satellite-guided bombs were dropped late Tuesday near Baqouba, 30 miles northeast of Baghdad, on “camps suspected to have been used for bomb-making,” said Maj. Gordon Tate, a spokesman for the 4th Infantry Division.

Jets also dropped 1,000-pound bombs on “terrorist targets” near the northern city of Kirkuk, he said.

In Baghdad, Brig. Gen. Martin Dempsey, commander of the 1st Armored Division, told The Associated Press the offensive was designed to demonstrate the effectiveness of U.S. firepower.

“We felt that the enemy had begun to act with a little more impunity than we want him to have,” said Dempsey, whose troops are responsible for security in the capital. “We’ve just raised the stakes a bit by planting the seeds of doubt in their minds.”