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May 1st, 2009


3 U.S. Troops Killed in Iraq Fighting

Deaths push April toll to 18, double the tally for March


File photo showing U.S. soldiers on patrol in Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad, May 19, 2008. (Photo credit: Ali Yussef / AFP — Getty Images)


May 1, 2009

BAGHDAD — Three U.S. troops have been killed in fighting west of Baghdad, the military said Friday, making April the deadliest month this year for American forces in Iraq.

The two U.S. Marines and one sailor were killed Thursday while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, according to a statement.

The deaths pushed the U.S. toll for April to 18, doubling the number who died the previous month. The U.S. military reported 17 Americans killed in February and 16 in January.

In all, at least 4,281 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. …

Civilian deaths in Iraq in April were also higher than previous months following a series of bombings that killed more than 200 people.

At least 355 Iraqi civilians and Iraqi security forces were killed in violence in April, according to a monthly death toll issued by various Iraqi government ministries.

That compares with an Associated Press tally of at least 365 Iraqis killed – in addition to 80 Iranian pilgrims — in violence in April. In March, 335 people were killed in violence in Iraq; 283 in February and 242 in January, according to the AP figures.

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3 U.S. Soldiers Die in Afghanistan Attack


May 1, 2009

KABUL — Three Americans and two other foreign soldiers were killed when insurgents opened fire on an outpost in eastern Afghanistan with small arms and rocket propelled grenades, the U.S. military said Friday. …

Earlier Friday, Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry said three Afghan soldiers were killed in overnight fighting with insurgents in eastern Kunar province.

Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi said the troops were manning a checkpoint that insurgents attacked late Thursday. He said he had reports of heavy casualties on the militant side, but did not have figures. …

The Taliban have vowed to increase ambushes and other attacks as an additional 21,000 U.S. troops flood into Afghanistan this summer in response to already-rising militant attacks. Many of the new forces are going to the south, where the Taliban have effective control over large regions.

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Related report: U.S. military deaths in Afghanistan region at 607

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Britain Ends Combat Operations in Iraq

Image: Brigadier Tom Beckett, Col. Henry A. Kievenaar
Brigadier Tom Beckett, right, shakes hands with U.S. Col. Henry A. Kievenaar as he transfers power at Basra International Airport on April 30, 2009. (Photo credit: Matt Cardy / Getty Images)


April 30, 2009

LONDON — The Iraq war formally ended for British forces on Thursday as America’s main battlefield ally handed control of the oil-rich Basra area to U.S. commanders and prepared to ship out most of its remaining 4,000 troops.

A U.S. flag was raised over the British base outside the southern city of Basra in a ceremony held after a memorial for the 179 British military personnel who died in more than six years of warfare. …

At the height of combat operations in the months after the U.S.-led invasion, Britain had 46,000 troops in Iraq. Washington still has about 130,000 troops in Iraq and has shifted units south ahead of the British pullout. …

About 400 British troops will remain under an agreement with the Iraqi government mainly to train the Iraqi navy to defend oil platforms in the Gulf, the British Ministry of Defense has said. …

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Security Developments in Iraq

Following are security developments in Iraq on Friday, May 1, 2009, as reported by Reuters.

KIRKUK – Police said they averted a suicide attack inside a mosque in southern Kirkuk, 150 miles north of Baghdad, when they detained a man who intended to detonate himself during Friday prayers.

LATIFIYA- Iraqi forces detained a man suspected to be part of the Islamic Army, a Sunni insurgent group, in Latifiya, 25 miles south of Baghdad, Baghdad security officials said.

ANBAR PROVINCE – Two U.S. Marines and one sailor were killed while conducting combat operations against militants in Iraq’s western Anbar province on Thursday, the U.S. military said, giving no further details.

BAGHDAD – A roadside bomb exploded in eastern Baghdad’s New Baghdad district, wounding five civilians, on Thursday, police said.

BAGHDAD – A roadside bomb wounded three civilians in northern Baghdad’s Binoog District on Thursday, police said.

TAL AFAR – Police said they found the bodies of three Turkmen brothers in Tal Afar, 260 miles northwest of Baghdad, on Thursday.

MOSUL – Gunmen shot dead an off-duty police officer near his home in eastern Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad, on Thursday, police said.

MOSUL – Gunmen killed the bodyguard of a Kurdish politician at the Kurdish Democratic Party headquarters on Thursday, police said.

Following are security developments in Iraq on Thursday, April 30, 2009, as reported by Reuters.

MOSUL – A roadside bomb in the south of Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad, targeted a police patrol wounding two policemen, police said.

BAGHDAD – A roadside bomb wounded three civilians in the Karrada district of central Baghdad, police said.

ABU GHRAIB – A roadside bomb wounded three civilians in Abu Ghraib, on the western outskirts of Baghdad, police said.

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U.S. Military Deaths in Iraq

As of Thursday, April 30, 2009, at least 4,278 members of the U.S. military had died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. …

Latest identifications:


Army Command Sgt. Maj. Benjamin Moore, Jr., 43, Waycross, Ga., died April 24, 2009 at Contingency Operating Base Speicher, Iraq, of injuries sustained in a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.


Army Staff Sgt. Leroy O. Webster, 28, Sioux Falls, S.D., died April 25, 2009 near Kirkuk, Iraq, after being shot while on a dismounted patrol. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 82nd Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.


Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler J. Trahan, 22, East Freetown, Mass., died April 30, 2009 while conducting combat operations in Fallujah, Iraq. He was assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit Twelve in Norfolk, Va., and was deployed with an East Coast based Navy SEAL team.

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Remember Their Sacrifice

Remember Their Sacrifice

Related links

Iraq Casualties

Afghanistan Casualties

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Visit Military Times — The top source for military news

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5/3/09 Update

Deaths in Iraq Jump: 6 Americans Killed in Recent Days

Clockwise from top left: James R. McIlvaine, Mark A. Wojciechowski, Tyler Trahan, Brad A. Davis, Benjamin Moore, Jr. and Leroy O. Webster. Photos: MySpace, Facebook and the tribute page for CSM Moore. (Photo: Salem-News.com
Clockwise from top left: James R. McIlvaine, Mark A. Wojciechowski, Tyler Trahan, Brad A. Davis, Benjamin Moore, Jr., and Leroy O. Webster. Photos: MySpace, Facebook and the tribute page for Command Sergeant Major Moore. (Photo credit: Salem-News.com)





2 Responses to “U.S. Death Toll Doubles in Iraq”
  1. Immelman for Congress » Blog Archive » Slight Dip in Iraq Death Toll Says:

    […] U.S. Death Toll Doubles in Iraq (May 1, 2009) […]

  2. Immelman for Congress » Blog Archive » Iraq Violence Persists Says:

    […] U.S. Death Toll Doubles in Iraq (May 1, 2009) […]

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