TODAY AND TOMORROW ARE THE WORST OF THE ANNIVERSARIES.

In Iraq, assailants attacked a U.S. military convoy on a highway north of Baghdad on Wednesday, killing one soldier and wounding two others. U.S. military officials tell VOA that a convoy of about 30 military vehicles, traveling north on Highway One, came under small arms fire and was attacked with rocket-propelled grenades early Wednesday.

The attack came on the anniversary of the date, in 1979, that Saddam Hussein seized power in Iraq. Thursday marks the day Saddam's Baath Party seized power in 1968. Both days were widely celebrated during Saddam's rule, but the celebrations have now been banned by Iraq's new governing council.

The U.S. military has been concerned about a possible escalation of violence this week against its troops by Saddam loyalists. Security has been tightened throughout the capital.