A reporter, a photographer, a television technician and a television cameraman were wounded at the Palestine Hotel, the base for much of the foreign media in the Iraqi capital, the Reuters said.

It was not immediately clear if there were other casualties after blasts struck the 15th and 17th floors of the high-rise building on the eastern banks of the Tigris River.

Reuters has its offices on the 15th floor.

Dubai's al-Arabiya television channel said its bureau on the 17th floor also suffered damage. But no casualty information was available.

US troops said snipers were shooting them from the hotel.

A Xinhua reporter who witnessed the attack said the hotel housed some 300 journalists. "The situation is very bad," he said.

Some observers said it looked like a tank or artillery shell had hit the building.

US tanks, artillery and warplanes have been pounding Iraqi forces and some facilities in the city all morning. Iraqis have fired back with some artillery and rocket-propelled grenades.

(Xinhua News Agency April 8, 2003)