BAGHDAD, Iraq - A bomb attack on a U.S. convoy in southern Baghdad killed one American soldier and wounded four others today, while gunmen broke into a house and kidnapped a top Interior Ministry official, U.S. and Iraqi officials said.

An abandoned taxi exploded as the U.S. patrol drove down an expressway in the Dora neighborhood, said Sgt. 1st Class David Abrams, a spokesman for Task Force Baghdad. He said one of the wounded soldiers had minor injuries, but no details were given on the others.

Another explosion targeted a joint Iraqi-U.S. convoy in the Amiriyah neighborhood in Baghdad, said al-Amil police officer Capt. Talib Thamir. Abrams said a blast had occurred but he did not have any details.

A top Interior Ministry official, Brig. Gen. Jala Mohammed Saleh, was kidnapped by gunmen who broke into his house, a ministry official said on customary condition of anonymity.

Saleh is involved in anti-insurgency operations in Iraq, but it was unclear why he was abducted. Kidnappings have become commonplace, with some kidnappers seeking ransoms and others making political demands.

Also today, the U.S. military said a Marine was killed on Monday by an explosion in the sprawling, western province of Anbar.

In Hillah, a member of the Babil provincial council, Salim Hilal, was gunned down as he was heading to work, police spokesman Capt. Muthana Khalid said. He said two suspects were arrested.