The US military said Monday that seven American troops have been wounded,
three insurgents have been killed and 34 detained during an intensive search for
two missing American soldiers.
A member of the U.S. military is seen through
the smashed window of a nearby vehicle after a car bomb exploded near a
university killing one woman and wounding 19 other people in the northern
city of Mosul in Iraq Sunday, June 18, 2006.
[AP] |
Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, a spokesman for US forces in Iraq, said fighter
jets, unmanned aerial vehicles and dive teams had been deployed to find the two
men. The men went missing Friday during an attack on their checkpoint in the
volatile Sunni area south of Baghdad that left one of their comrades dead.
"We have surged intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms and
employed planes, boats, helicopters and UAVs to ensure the most thorough search
possible on the ground, in the air and in the water," Caldwell said in a
statement issued Monday.
He did not comment on reports that the two men had been seized by insurgents,
saying only that they were listed as "duty status and whereabouts unknown." He
said seven other US service members had been wounded in action during the
search efforts that began Friday night.
The Defense Department identified the missing men as Pfc. Kristian Menchaca,
23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore. It said Spc.
David J. Babineau, 25, Springfield, Mass., was killed in the attack. The three
were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st
Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
Caldwell said more than 8,000 US and Iraqi troops were participating in the
search.
"While searching for our soldiers, we have engaged in a number of significant
actions against the anti-Iraqi forces," he said, adding that three insurgents
had been killed and 34 taken into custody.
He also said the military had received 63 tips and had launched 12 cordon and
search operations, eight air assaults and 280 flight hours were logged.
"Approximately 12 villages have been cleared in the area, and we continue to
engage local citizens for help and information leading to the whereabouts of our
soldiers," he said, without elaborating.
