Australian soldiers have fired at a truck which failed to stop at a coalition check point in the vicinity of the Australian Embassy in Iraq and killed the driver, Australia's defense force said Sunday.

The incident occurred Saturday morning local time when members of the Australian Security Detachment (SECDET) in Baghdad fired on the vehicle, which failed to adhere to access control measures and refused to stop despite specific signals to do so, Australian Defense Force (ADF) said in a statement.

But subsequent clearance of the incident site confirmed that the vehicle contained no explosive devices and indications are that the driver was a civilian contractor employed in the International Zone, said ADF.

However, ADF said preliminary assessments indicate that the actions of the SECDET and coalition members were in accordance with their formally approved Rules of Engagement.

Australian Acting Director General Public Affairs Pup Elliott said: "The vehicle had successfully negotiated one level of controlled access and was directed to move to another control point, where amongst other security measures, the vehicle would be searched. Inexplicably, the vehicle failed to stop as it approached this additional control point."

"Despite clear signage, physical control measures and clear requests by Australian personnel to stop, the driver continued to drive the vehicle towards the control point showing no intention of stopping," he said in the statement.

"Subsequently, soldiers from both the Australian Security Detachment and a coalition member manning the Entry Control Point fired on the vehicle. Three separate volleys of fire were used before the vehicle came to a halt," he said.

The third volley of fire brought the vehicle to a halt, he said.

As a result, the driver of the vehicle was killed while no Australian or coalition personnel were injured, Elliott said.

Australia, a staunch supporter of the U.S.-led war on terror, currently maintains around 1,400 troops in the Middle East, including 800 based inside Iraq.

Source: Xinhua