Seven US troops wounded in Iraq

Published July 9, 2003

BAGHDAD, July 8: Seven US soldiers were wounded in three separate attacks in Iraq on Tuesday, a military spokesman said.

In the northern city of Kirkuk, “three soldiers were wounded in a patrol with the 173rd Airborne Brigade,” Corporal Todd Pruden said, adding that attackers had fired a rocket-propelled grenade.

“The patrol returned fire but no Iraqis were detained,” he said, adding that the three soldiers were receiving medical treatment.

In a second attack, on the main highway from Baghdad to the international airport to the southwest, “an improvised explosive device was dropped from a bridge onto a convoy,” Pruden said.

“Two soldiers were wounded. One returned to duty and the other is still receiving medical care,” he said.

In a third incident, a military vehicle struck a landmine in Baghdad.

“Two soldiers were wounded and evacuated to a medical facility,” he said, adding that the vehicle had been completely destroyed.

A spokesperson later said the soldiers had suffered only minor injuries.—AFP