Outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair has made a stop in Iraq during his final tour as PM, and his arrival was marked by three mortar shells or rockets that slammed into the compound where he met with Iraqi leaders.
One person was wounded in the strikes on the Green Zone -- the heavily fortified, walled area in the Iraqi capital.
A fourth rocket reportedly struck just outside the Green Zone.
Meanwhile, in other violence, gunmen wearing Iraqi army uniforms shot and killed 15 men in a Kurdish Shiite village east of Baghdad and the U.S. announced five more American soldiers have been killed -- four of them on Friday in fighting and bombings and one Saturday by a roadside bomb.
ABC's Terry McCarthy, reporting from Baghdad, told 麻豆影视net that attacks like the one on the Green Zone Saturday are now virtually expected when foreign officials visit.
"It's almost become a rite of passage for senior visitors to the Green Zone," McCarthy said.
"The same thing happened when U.S. Vice-President Dick Cheney was here last week and similarly with the UN secretary General Ban Ki-moon. It shows the insurgents have an ability both to find out when high profile visitors are coming and also they have fairly good targeting technology now. They're landing quite accurately inside the Green Zone."
The Associated Press is reporting that one of the rounds hit the British Embassy compound, suggesting insurgents knew Blair was coming and the attacks were targeting him.
Though it is not known whether Blair was in the embassy at the time of the attack, he seemed to make reference to it during a news conference with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and President Jalal Talabani.
"Iraq was liberated from the terrible dictatorship of Saddam (Hussein) and now there are attempts to oppress it in a different ways with terrorism and violence," Blair said.
The visit marks the seventh time Blair had visited Iraq, and it will be his final trip as prime minister to the war-torn country. His term as prime minister has been greatly defined by his largely unpopular decision to support the war in Iraq.
During his remarks Saturday, Blair said he beleived the security situation was improving in Iraq, but there is still al ong way to go.
Blair pledged Britain would continue to support Iraq's leaders after he leaves office in June.
He urged Talabani and al-Maliki to call new provincial elections and increase efforts to bring those linked to violence into the political process.
Blair appeared to become irritated at repeated questions from reporters about levels of violence.
"There is violence and terrorism in Iraq, but what they are saying is that there is also hope and change," Blair said.
Blair's spokesperson said Blair urged the two top Iraqi leaders to hold new provincial elections in order to increase political representation for Sunnis and stem bloodshed.
The spokesperson, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity, said no agreement was reached with the two leaders to hold elections.
Sunnis boycotted the last round of provincial voting, but Blair believes their participation is essential to ending sectarian fighting.
The spokesperson said tribal elders and community leaders who may be "connected with people who have committed violence" must be engaged with.
Blair arrived in Iraq via Kuwait, following talks in Washington with U.S. President George Bush on Thursday.
The 15 men were killed Saturday when gunmen wearing army uniforms entered Hamid Shafi, east of Baghdad, in the early morning hours, roused families from their sleep and began firing on the men, AP reports.
The victims were Kurdish Shiite Muslims, according to reports.
Hamid Shafi is located in Diyala province, an area northeast of Baghdad where violence has escalated in the past six months.
WIth files from The Associated Press
