A British soldier was killed and another injured by a home-made roadside bomb in Iraq, the Ministry of Defence said today.

Anthony John Wakefield, 24, a member of the Coldstream Guards from Newcastle upon Tyne, died today after being injured while on patrol near the southern town of al-Amarah yesterday at about midnight Iraqi time. Another soldier from the same unit was injured in the attack on the patrol, made up of two armoured Land Rovers. A defence ministry spokesman said the second soldier’s injuries were not serious.

Geoff Hoon, the Defence Secretary, said: "This was a routine operation just south of al Amarah in our area of operations. It appears that the bomb - what we call an improvised explosive device - was placed in the road and tragically had the effect of ending this guardsman’s life."

Both soldiers were members of the Coldstream Guards based at Aldershot, who were serving alongside the 1 Staffords in the 12 Mechanised Brigade who have been deployed in Iraq since March.

Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Williams, commanding officer of 1 Staffords, said: “He [ Guardsman Wakefield] was acting as the top cover sentry in the second of a two vehicle patrol when what appears to have been an improvised explosive device detonated - disabling the vehicle and injuring another soldier.

“Despite receiving first aid at the scene and in the
helicopter that evacuated him, he sadly died of wounds shortly after being attended by the doctor at the Battlegroup’s base just outside the town."

Lt Col Williams said Guardsman Wakefield was “a supremely fit and popular soldier who died doing his duty and amongst his friends. A proud Coldstream Guardsman, he was attached to the Staffords Battlegroup and had made many friends during his
time with us.

“To all those who were lucky enough to know him, it was clear that he loved his duty and had a very bright future ahead of him. Guardsman Wakefield will be sorely missed by a great many
people and our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this difficult time.”

In 2002 Private Wakefield, a married father-of-three, was rescued from the Tyne after diving into fast-flowing currents to save a friend who had fallen from the Swing Bridge after the pair had been celebrating his first night home on leave from Northern Ireland. A police helicopter pilot 'blew' the pair back to the quayside by directing down-draughts from his rotors 50ft above to flatten the waves and push the pair to safety.

The guardsman was the first British soldier to die in hostile action in the south of Iraq this year. His death takes to 87 the number of British service personnel to die in Operation Telic - the name given to the British military operation in Iraq. The last soldiers to have been killed in the British-controlled southern sector of Iraq died last September following an ambush of a military convoy south west of Basra. Corporal Marc Taylor, 27, who served with the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, and Gunner David Lawrence, 25, of the 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, were attacked on the outskirts of the city.

Just over 8,000 British soldiers are in southern Iraq, the bulk of them from 12 Mechanised Brigade, the MoD said.

Mr Hoon said that while there had been a reduction in the level of attacks since the Iraqi elections in January, the insurgents continued to pose a threat to coalition forces. "This does demonstrate the continuing threat to our forces in Iraq," he said. "There has been a significant reduction after the very successful election in Iraq. I accept that there have been spikes of activity by the insurgents from time to time.

"These terrorists are seeking to disrupt Iraq and the coalition forces in the light of the very substantial defeat they suffered at the time of those elections."

Speaking at Labour’s election news conference, Tony Blair offered his condolences to the relatives of the dead man and said: "It underlines once again the extraordinary work and sacrifice that British armed forces are making in Iraq, to help Iraq become a stable and democratic country that’s no longer a threat to its region and the world. And we should be immensely grateful for the work they do."

Conservtive leader Michael Howard, speaking in Manchester, expressed his "deep sympathy and sincere condolences". Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy said: "Everybody’s thoughts will be with the soldier’s family at this terrible time. My heartfelt sympathies are with them."

The attack came as insurgents in and around the Iraqi capital to the north were stepping up their activities. At least 123 people have been killed in a string of bombings, ambushes and other attacks since Iraq’s interim government appointed a partial cabinet last week. Today a car bomb exploded in an upmarket shopping district of Baghdad, killing at least six Iraqis and setting fire to an apartment building, police said. Two other bombs exploded in the capital, narrowly missing a top Iraqi security official and an American patrol.

Yesterday insurgents killed at least 36 Iraqis in a series of attacks, including 25 who died and more than 50 who were wounded by a car bomb that ripped through a tent packed with mourners at the funeral of a Kurdish official in the northern city of Tal Afar.

Mr Blair was tackled yesterday on the deaths of British service personnel in Iraq on an independent radio phone-in. He said that the deaths of British soldiers was "a deeply heavy responsibility" but said he could not apologise for taking the country to war. He was criticised by the families of the some of the dead afterwards for being unable to say exactly how many casualties UK forces had suffered. Asked the question, he said: "It’s 70 to 80 people who have died."

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