Two Missing U.S. Soldiers Found Dead North of Baghdad

Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2003 14:16:18 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.religion.islam
Size: 1,728 bytes

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,90662,00.html
Two missing U.S. soldiers were found dead Saturday 25 miles north of Baghdad
(search), Centcom has confirmed.
The soldiers and their Humvee went missing from a check post Wednesday in the
town of Balad (search).
News of the deaths came amid a relentless slew of guerrilla-style attacks and
sabotage that have marred U.S. efforts to reestablish order in Iraq.
At least 61 U.S. troops have died in Iraq since major combat ended May 1,
including at least 23 in attacks.
The latest violence occurred just after 11 p.m. Friday, when attackers lobbed a
grenade at a U.S. convoy making its way through the predominantly Shiite Thawra
neighborhood of northeast Baghdad. One American soldier was killed and four
others were wounded, said military spokesman Sgt. Patrick Compton.
The torrent of attacks and ever-harsher U.S. crackdowns is sparking frustration
on both sides.
Until recently, almost all violence against occupying forces occurred in Sunni
(search) areas north and west of Baghdad, where Saddam mined support. But
attacks this week have spread into the Shiite majority south.
Even something as simple as an evening concert is seen as a victory in Baghdad,
an occupied city with tanks on its streets whose darkened nights have become
roaming grounds for bandits, and whose frustrated residents have largely been
living by candle light.
Iraq's National Symphony Orchestra (search) held its first concert since
Saddam's ouster Friday, performing a patriotic song that predates the former
dictator, and was rarely played during his brutal, 35-year reign. Saddam didn't
like the song, "My Nation," which contains no mention of the strongman or his
Baath party loyalists.