BAGHDAD, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Five U.S. soldiers, including three marines and a sailor, have been killed across Iraq, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

    The three marines and the sailor were killed on Tuesday during the combat operations in Diyala province, where some 10,000 U.S. soldiers are carrying a major offensive targeting Shiite militia and al-Qaida Sunni fighters, a military statement said.

    The fifth soldier was killed on Wednesday by small arms fire in southern Baghdad, the military said.

    The names of the killed soldiers are being withheld pending notification of relatives, the statements added.

    The latest deaths bring the number of U.S. soldiers have been killed in Iraq to about 3,640 since the Iraq war broke out in March 2003, according to media count based on Pentagon figures.