One envoy was slightly injured; another had his convoy fired on.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — Insurgents have taken a fearsome toll in Iraqi civilian lives with their bombs. They regularly target and kill American forces. They have crippled Iraq's infrastructure — from oil and natural gas pipelines to the shaky electricity grid to water supplies.

Now insurgents appear to have opened a diplomatic front. The top-ranking diplomat from Bahrain was shot and slightly wounded in a bungled abduction Tuesday. Pakistan's ambassador was shot at but not hit.

The attacks unfolded just three days after Cairo's top envoy was pistol-whipped and thrown into the trunk of a car in the second kidnapping of an Egyptian diplomat in a year. The attacks on diplomats were seen as an attempt to prevent Baghdad from expanding critical diplomatic ties with its Arab and Muslim neighbors.

Iraqi government spokesman Laith Kuba told reporters insurgents had begun pursuing diplomats to sow a climate of fear and to "scare the other diplomatic missions so that they won't expand their presence in Iraq."

Parliamentarian Abbas al-Bayati concurred:

"This is a message from the terrorists to the Arab countries not to open embassies in Iraq and to prevent security, economic and political overtures to Iraq."

A casualty and close calls

Also Tuesday, a U.S. soldier was killed and two were wounded in a roadside bombing northeast of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. At least 1,745 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

Bahrain's top envoy in Iraq, Hassan Malallah al-Ansari, was slightly wounded as he drove to work in the Mansour district, hospital and Bahraini officials said. Co-workers said they believed it was a kidnap attempt.

Pakistan's Ambassador Mohammed Younis Khan escaped injury later Tuesday when gunmen in two cars fired on his convoy in a kidnap attack in the same district, security officials said.

Both envoys were to leave the country temporarily after the attacks, their governments said.

"Our escort fired back at them, so we were able to escape without any harm," Khan told AP. Khan, named ambassador earlier this year, said he believed one of the attackers' cars was hit by gunfire from his bodyguards but was not sure if any of the men were wounded.

Al-Qaida link?

A Web site statement Tuesday claimed responsibility in the name of Al-Qaida in Iraq for the kidnapping of Egyptian diplomat Ihad al-Sherif.

It marked the first time the group, headed by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility for kidnapping a diplomat. Al-Qaida in Iraq, considered one of the most fearsome militant groups in the country, has killed several foreign civilians and contractors that it abducted in the past, often releasing gruesome videos of their beheadings.

The statement made no threat to kill the diplomat and did not issue demands. It said only that further information would be released later. It could not be verified but was signed "Abu Maysara al-Iraqi," the name used on all claims by Al-Qaida in Iraq.

Last month, Egypt became the first Arab nation to respond to U.S. calls for Iraq's neighbors to upgrade their diplomatic missions in Baghdad. Pakistan and Bahrain are among America's closest allies in the Muslim world and in the global campaign against terrorism.

The diplomat attacks occurred as Iraq's Shiite-dominated government made overtures to Sunni Arabs, who largely boycotted the Jan. 30 election and who form the backbone of the insurgency.

The mostly Shiite and Kurdish committee drafting a new constitution accepted 15 Sunni members Tuesday after weeks of haggling. And a prominent Sunni group called on its supporters Monday to take part in future elections.

Sunni participation in preparing the new constitution is considered essential in undermining support for the insurgents. Sunnis form about 20 percent of Iraq's 26 million people but are the majority Muslim sect throughout the Arab world.

Iraq also must win widespread acceptance among its Islamic neighbors to develop as a stable and prosperous society.

Diplomatic status

About 18 Arab and non-Arab Muslim countries and political entities maintain diplomatic relations with Iraq, although relatively junior diplomats lead most missions. Arab governments have been reluctant to upgrade representation, fearing that would be seen as an endorsement of the U.S. military presence, widely opposed in the Middle East.

Al-Sherif was sent to Baghdad June 1 as a step toward appointing a full ambassador. Last week, Syria, which has only an interests section in Baghdad, sent a delegation to Iraq to discuss reopening an embassy. Results of that visit were unknown.

Despite such progress, tension has arisen between some Arab countries and Iraq over issues such as support for the insurgency or negotiations with militants.

Iraq and Jordan tangled when Amman expressed concern about Shiite dominance in the region and Baghdad complained that Jordan wasn't doing enough to stop insurgents from entering Iraq. After anti-Jordanian protests, Amman removed its top diplomat from Baghdad in March and has not named a replacement.

The Iraqis also are suspicious that Sunni-led Arab countries maintain back-channel contacts with Sunni Arab insurgents. On Tuesday, Kuba suggested al-Sherif may have been abducted while on his way to meet with insurgents.

"The fact that he went out without security may have been because he was on his way to make such contacts," Kuba told reporters. "The only recommendation is that contacting these armed groups is dangerous and has repercussions."

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