Three US soldiers, including one marine, were killed in hostile actions west of Iraq within the past two days, a US military spokesman said Wednesday.

The marine was killed Tuesday, while one of the other two soldiers died of wounds sustained in combat action on the same day. Another soldier was killed in combat action on Monday, the spokesman said.

The spokesman gave no further details about the incidents that took place in al-Anbar province, west of Baghdad.

About 660 US servicemen have been killed in action in Iraq since the invasion last March to oust Saddam Hussein.

Al-Anbar province is part of the so-called Sunni triangle which has been the hotbed of insurgency against the US-led multinational forces in Iraq. 

(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2004)