One US soldier was captured by insurgents in the restive city of Samarra, north of Baghdad, the Dubai-based al-Arabiya TV channel reported Tuesday.  

The soldier was captured by gunmen in two Opel cars on Monday night, Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Ahmed from Samarra police was quoted as saying.

He added that the US military had informed Iraqi security forces and asked them to look for the US soldier.

The US military had no immediate comment on the incident.

Last month, US and Iraqi forces stormed Samarra, some 110 km north of Baghdad, in a bid to drive insurgents off the streets as part of a campaign to contain the worsening security situation before the much-anticipated elections due in January, 2005.

(Xinhua News Agency November 3, 2004)