2 U.S. soldiers killed, 5 wounded

Separate attacks target forces in Baghdad, north of city

MSNBC

BAGHDAD, Iraq, July 31 — Two American soldiers were killed and five wounded in new attacks in Iraq, U.S. officials said Thursday. One soldier was killed and three were wounded on Thursday when their vehicle hit a land mine on the road to Baghdad International Airport. Another American was killed and two injured by small-arms fire at their base north of the city late Wednesday, the military said.

“ONE 1ST ARMORED Division soldier was killed and three were wounded when their M-113 Armoured Personnel Carrier hit a land mine on a road in Baghdad at approximately 12:20 p.m. (4:20 a.m. ET),” a statement from U.S. Central Command said.



The wounded soldiers, whose names were withheld pending notification of next-of-kin, were evacuated to the 47th Forward Support Battalion for treatment, the statement said. No further information was immediately available.

News of the Baghdad attack came shortly after after U.S. Central Command announced that one soldier from the 4th Infantry Division had died and two were wounded when their unit came under fire at a forward position 50 miles northeast of Baghdad at 11:45 p.m. Wednesday. The attack occurred about 25 miles east of Baqouba, where U.S. troops have come under repeated attack recently, especially by mortar fire.



NEW ATTACK IN ‘SUNNI TRIANGLE’

The town is in the so-called “Sunni Triangle,” a heavily Sunni Muslim area to the north and west of Baghdad where support for ousted dictator Saddam Hussein has been strongest and where U.S. forces have come under the most attacks. The death of the soldier broke a period of relative peace. No U.S. soldier had been reported killed in combat in Iraq in more than 48 hours.

The wounded soldiers, who weren’t identified until their families were notified, were taken to a military hospital for treatment, Centcom said in a statement. The deaths bring to 51 the number of U.S. troops killed in hostile action since May 1, when President Bush declared an end to major combat in Iraq.