U.S. soldier killed in Kirkuk ambush
Mourners gather in Baghdad for slain councilor’s funeral
MSNBC NEWS SERVICESBAGHDAD, Iraq, Sept. 26 — One soldier from the 173rd Airborne Brigade was killed and two others were wounded during an ambush in northern Iraq, the U.S. military said Friday. The attack came hours before mourners gathered in Baghdad for the funeral of a U.S.-appointed Iraqi leader assassinated by gunmen.
THE INCIDENT occurred about 11 p.m. Thursday when someone fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the soldiers’ vehicle in the oil-producing city of Kirkuk, about 145 miles north of Baghdad. The names of the victims were withheld pending notification of relatives.
The death raised to 86 the number of U.S. soldiers killed by hostile fire since May 1, when President Bush declared an end to major combat in Iraq.
Two hundred Americans have died in combat here since the United States launched military operations here on March 20.
Earlier, a mortar attack on a market in the restive town of Baqouba killed eight civilian Iraqis and wounded 18 others on Thursday, the U.S. military said. Troops of the U.S. 4th Infantry Division rushed to the scene to help. A spokesman said no American personnel were wounded in the attack.
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