The U.S. military says fierce clashes in the Iraqi city of Baquba have resulted in the deaths 24 Iraqi police officers and 18 insurgents.

The U.S. military says a civilian also died in the violence that erupted Thursday after insurgents ambushed a police unit.

In the northern city of Mosul, authorities have imposed a vehicle ban after insurgents distributed leaflets threatening violence in the mixed Sunni-Kurdish city.

Meanwhile, U.S. troops backed by air support have moved into the militia stronghold of Sadr City in eastern Baghdad in search of a missing American soldier. The military says the soldier is believed to have left the fortified Green Zone to visit relatives on Monday, and that armed gunmen kidnapped him from that home.

The month of October has turned out to the be the deadliest for the U.S. military in a year, with 96 deaths.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.