"The car convoy with members of the Russian embassy in Iraq, including the ambassador, came under attack leaving Baghdad in the direction of the Syrian border," the spokesman told AFP.

He said officials did not yet know whether the convoy came under attack from Iraqi or US-led coalition forces or if the envoy himself was among the injured.

The Russian foreign ministry summoned the US and Iraqi ambassadors to Moscow "urgently and in a harsh way", the spokesman said, adding that it demanded "they take all possible measures to ensure the security of Russian citizens."

Russian ambassador to Iraq Vladimir Titorenko left Baghdad for Damascus early Sunday as US troops advanced on the Iraqi capital.

Russia, one of the most fervent opponents to the US-led war, had kept its Baghdad embassy operational with a skeleton staff after withdrawing all non-essential personnel in the days leading up to the start of the US-led offensive last month.

Russia protested loudly last week when the building was almost hit by US bombs. Baghdad has come under daily bombing raids since the war began on March

The US-British coalition kept up its aerial and ground blitz on the Iraqi capital Sunday, and reports from Baghdad said the south of the city came under particularly heavy bombardment early in the afternoon.

SPACE.WIRE