Car Bomb Kills 7 in Western Iraq; Basra Death Toll Rises to 43

Iraqi police say a car bomb has killed eight people and wounded 23 in Ramadi, a city about 100 kilometers west of Baghdad.

Officials say Sunday's blast occurred near a post office where local residents were standing in line to collect payments from the state.

In other violence, police in Fallujah say a car bomb killed two people and wounded at least three others.

And the U.S. military issued a statement Sunday saying an American soldier was killed a day earlier Babil province, south of Baghdad.

Meanwhile, Iraqi officials say the death toll from Saturday's explosion at a market in the southern city of Basra has risen from 14 to at least 43.

There were conflicting reports about the cause of the Basra blast. Some officials say an electricity generator exploded at the Ashaar market in central Basra, while others describe the incident as a bomb attack.

Earlier Saturday, gunmen killed four policemen and wounded six others in a pre-dawn gun battle in Baghdad's mostly-Sunni Saidiya neighborhood.

The shootout began when police raided a house acting on tip about a stolen car. Police later found a cache of bombs in the building.

A wave of violence has swept Iraq since its inconclusive parliamentary election in March, leaving some officials fearful that insurgents are taking advantage of the political uncertainty.

The political impasse is continuing as the United States withdraws troops and prepares to end its combat mission in Iraq by the end of the month.