BAGHDAD, March 27 (Reuters) - A giant column of black smoke was visible near the U.S. embassy in Baghdad's Green Zone on Thursday after an apparent mortar strike, a Reuters reporter said.

The blast struck near a former palace of Saddam Hussein that has been used as the headquarters for hundreds of U.S. civilian and military personnel in Iraq. Embassy officials were not immediately available for comment.

The fortified Green Zone diplomatic and government compound has been struck by repeated volleys of mortar bombs and rockets over the past three days. Sixteen mortars hit the zone on Wednesday, injuring four people including two U.S. civilians.

(Reporting by Randy Fabi; writing by Peter Graff; editing by Ross Colvin)

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