A rchive Date
[ 29-06-2003 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ U.S ]
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[http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/World/2003/06/28/122258-ap.html
U.S. soldiers' remains found
American death toll in Iraq passes 200
By PAUL HAVEN
Sat, June 28, 2003
BAGHDAD (AP) - After days of an intense search from the ground and air, U.S. forces found the bodies on Saturday of two American soldiers missing north of Baghdad, as the toll of American dead since the start of war passed 200.
Also Saturday, British forces were greeted peacefully as they returned to a southern Shiite town where six of their troops were killed in clashes. And the U.S. military announced small rebuilding projects, ranging from the delivery of school and medical supplies to the restoration of power and water in several Iraqi towns.
The day's events highlighted the pattern of progress and setback that has bedevilled the U.S.-led occupation, facing daily attacks that distract from the mission of reconstruction.
The soldiers' remains were found 30 kilometres northwest of the capital, the military said.
Sgt. 1st Class Gladimir Philippe, 37, of Linden, N.J., and Pte. 1st Class Kevin Ott, 27, of Columbus, Ohio, had disappeared along with their Humvee on Wednesday from the town of Balad, 45 kilometres north of Baghdad. No further details were immediately available.
In other violence, attackers lobbed a grenade at a U.S. convoy making its way through the predominantly Shiite Thawra neighbourhood of northeast Baghdad late Friday, killing one American soldier and wounding four others, said military spokesman Sgt. Patrick Compton. A civilian Iraqi interpreter was also wounded, he said. No arrests were made and no further details were immediately available.
Another soldier, shot in the neck Friday as he shopped at a Baghdad market, was listed in critical condition Saturday, Compton said.
The deaths bring to at least 63 the number of U.S. troops killed in Iraq since major combat was declared over on May 1. The military has confirmed the identities of 138 soldiers killed before that date, while the names of several other casualties have not yet been made available.
In addition, some 42 British troops have died in the current conflict. The American death toll was still far below the 382 U.S. troops killed in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.
It is impossible to know how many Iraqi soldiers have died in the conflict. An exhaustive Associated Press investigation completed earlier this month found that at least 3,240 civilians died throughout the country.
"Combat is not over in this country," a U.S. military spokesman said Saturday, amid signs that larger-scale military operations might kick off soon to eliminate armed resistance.
The spokesman, who briefed reporters on customary condition of anonymity, blamed continued violence on Saddam loyalists, common criminals and outside agitators who have flocked to Iraq to resist the coalition occupation.
The persistent drumbeat of guerrilla-style attacks and sabotage has raised doubts about the coalition's mission in Iraq. Senate Democrats in Washington have called for an inquiry into the credibility of prewar intelligence on Iraq's banned biological, chemical and nuclear weapons and its links to the al-Qaida terror network.
As attacks increased, so has fear that anti-American resistance was becoming more organized. The U.S. military brushed off those claims.
"We have always anticipated and were prepared for what we term as pockets of resistance," said Lt.-Cmdr. Nicholas Balice, a spokesman for Centcom in Tampa, Fla. "We anticipate that we'll be dealing with the situation for some time."
In other violence:
- Suspected insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades on Friday at U.S. troops in Fallujah, 50 kilometres west of Baghdad, causing no injuries or damage. Later, soldiers at a checkpoint arrested four Iraqi men when rocket-propelled grenades, small arms and grenades were found in their vehicle, the military said.
-A U.S. patrol came under small arms fire late Friday near Habaniyah, just west of Fallujah, and U.S. troops returned fire. No injuries or damage were reported.
-A fire broke out at one of Baghdad's largest textbook printing plants, sending thick, black smoke billowing over the capital. Coalition forces arrested two men. "We think it was an act of arson," said Lt.-Col. James Otwell, a civil affairs liaison working with the Iraqi fire department.
Saboteurs have been attacking Baghdad's power grid and oil pipelines, foiling coalition efforts to restore basic services like water and electricity, a source of frustration for ordinary Iraqis.
The setbacks have overshadowed progress made since the fall of Saddam's regime. The vital oil industry has resumed, if only at a fraction of its prewar output, and will be pumping much-needed dollars into state coffers. Police and court systems are also coming back on line, providing hope for improved law and order despite an overwhelming crime wave.
On Saturday, British soldiers moved back into Majar al-Kabir, a predominantly Shiite southern town, scene of the deadly bloody confrontation. A group of Shiite clerics and prominent town officials received the returning soldiers in a ceremony aimed at putting the acrimony in the past.
"We are not here for retribution," said Capt. Guy Winter of Dover, England, who made initial contact with the Iraqi delegation. "We are here to re-establish communications and get the (rebuilding) process back on the road."
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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