Among those left cowering in the basement as American commandos hunted the bombers was Norway's foreign minister, Jonas Gahr Stoere, who had been holding a meeting in a place seen as secure.

ECONOMIST: A bombing in Kabul

And now, the U.S. Marines, American Marines, along with some British commandos, are battling for Umm Qasr, which is Iraq's big commercial port.

CNN: British secure position on Faw Peninsula