2 Soldiers Killed in Iraq as Insurgents Intensify Attacks

BAGHDAD — Insurgents shelled a base northeast of the Iraqi capital Thursday, killing two U.S. soldiers and wounding four, the military said. In Baghdad, rebels unleashed a string of grenade, rocket and mortar attacks targeting banks, the headquarters of the U.S.-led occupation, several embassies and a hotel housing foreigners.

The two Americans who died were seriously injured when insurgents fired mortars at their base in Baqubah, 25 miles northeast of Baghdad, said Maj. Josslyn Aberle of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division. They were evacuated for medical care but died, she said. The four others did not have life-threatening injuries.

The Christmas Day attacks were some of the most extensive since Saddam Hussein’s capture Dec. 13 and followed warnings by U.S. officials that there could be spectacular attacks during the holiday season.

The 19-story Ishtar Hotel, still commonly referred to as the Sheraton, was hit on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, the first time by a mortar shell that exploded harmlessly against a wall, and then by a rocket-propelled grenade that crashed through the atrium.

There were no injuries in the attacks on the hotel located on the east bank of the Tigris River, where many journalists stay.

One grenade, apparently intended for the hotel, crashed through a bedroom wall in an apartment building across the street, detonating and injuring two women.

After that attack, U.S. soldiers investigating the area found leaflets warning Iraqis to stay home, said Lt. Kurt Muniz of New York City. The leaflets warned U.S. forces to leave the country and Iraqi police to stop working with foreign occupiers.

Rockets and grenades also hit the Iranian and Turkish embassies, but did not penetrate the buildings. Another projectile hit an office building behind the German Embassy, blasting an empty second-floor suite.

A mortar shell struck a police station in southern Baghdad, but caused no injuries, the military said. Attackers also blew holes in two banks, police said. No money was stolen.

One rocket hit the Baghdad City Council building, shattering windows.

Two roadside bombs exploded on Palestine Street, a thoroughfare full of photo studios and shops selling wedding gowns that is often used by U.S. military convoys. Two Iraqi police officers were injured.

Capping the day’s attacks, the complex housing the occupation headquarters was struck with projectiles before midnight. A U.S. military spokeswoman said there were “two to three impacts in the vicinity of the Green Zone,” the fortified area where the occupation is based, but no casualties were reported.