July 1 (Bloomberg) -- Seven U.S. soldiers were injured in three separate attacks in Iraq today, Lieutenant Gabrielle Turnbull, a spokeswoman for the U.S.-led coalition, said.

Three soldiers were injured when a U.S. military convoy was attacked near Baghdad's international airport, Turnbull said from Baghdad. Another three soldiers were hurt in central Baghdad when their convoy was hit with an ``improvised explosive device,'' she said. The wounded soldiers were taken to a combat hospital nearby for treatment.

In another incident, one U.S. soldier was wounded near the town of Samarra, about 80 miles north of Baghdad along the Tigris River, she said. Samarra is about 30 miles south of Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, a traditional stronghold of his loyalists.

Turnbull couldn't confirm an Agence France-Presse report that four U.S. soldiers were killed and two wounded in a grenade attack today on their vehicle in central Baghdad. The French news agency cited witnesses for its account. The attack took place near a gas station in the al-Mustansiriya district, AFP said.

Baghdad and the surrounding area have been the site of the most intense U.S. military activity intended to root out the remnants of Hussein's regime and others opposed to the American- led coalition occupying the country.

U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday that allied forces aren't sinking into a ``quagmire'' in Iraq as they face increasing attacks by supporters of the ousted regime.

The U.S. military earlier this week began a military operation, Sidewinder, its third in a month to hunt for the Hussein loyalists. At least 20 U.S. soldiers have been killed by enemy attacks since President George W. Bush declared an end to major combat operations on May 1.

Last Updated: July 1, 2003 12:54 EDT