Iraqi officials say a minibus carrying a bomb exploded outside the offices of a key Kurdish political party near the northern city of Mosul, killing a party official and at least one guard.

About 15 people were wounded in Wednesday's blast outside the offices of the Democratic Party of Kurdistan.

An Iraqi forces member walks though wreckage of a vehicle after car bomb attack in Tikrit, 130 kilometers north of Baghdad, 10 Oct 2007

Also Wednesday, a car bomb exploded in the central Iraqi city of Tikrit, killing at least four people, including at least one policeman. Nearly 10 other people were wounded in the attack.

To the south, Iraqi police say 11 children and at least two teachers were wounded when mortar fire hit a school in the city of Diwaniyah.

In other news, the U.S. military announced the deaths of two U.S. soldiers from non-combat-related injuries in Iraq.

A separate statement says coalition forces killed an estimated 37 terrorists, detained 25 suspects and found several weapons caches during a four-day operation targeting al-Qaida in Iraq in the Diyala River Valley, north of Baghdad.

Meanwhile, Iraqi officials have condemned the deadly shooting of two women in Baghdad by foreign security guards on Tuesday.

Guards employed by an Australian-owned company fired on the womens' car as it approached their convoy in Baghdad's Karrada district.

Iraqi police and witnesses say the guards raced away after the shooting.

The security firm, Dubai-based Unity Resources Group, says the guards fired on the speeding car after it ignored warnings to stop, including hand signals and a flare.

Some information for this report was provided by AP.