Blair under fire as troops die in Iraq
Gideon Long
London, June 24: Six British troops were killed and eight wounded on Tuesday in two separate incidents in eastern Iraq, adding another blow to PM Tony Blair’s latest spate of post-war blues.
It was not immediately clear whether the six were killed as a result of hostile fire or an accident, but the eight were wounded when a British helicopter came under attack.
The incident was the single bloodiest blow to US or British forces in Iraq since March 23, three days after the start of the US-led war to topple Saddam Hussein.
Blair’s spokesman said both incidents occurred near the city of Amarah, around 200 km north of Iraq’s second city, British-controlled Basra. The six were the first British soldiers to die in Iraq since Saddam fell.
The Defence Ministry said that one of the incidents involved an attack on a patrol of soldiers from the first battalion of the Parachute Regiment.
‘‘The patrol took one casualty and two vehicles were destroyed,’’ the ministry said in a statement. ‘‘In responding to the incident, an RAF Chinook helicopter carrying a quick reaction force came under fire as it landed,’’ the ministry said. ‘‘Seven personnel on board the helicopter were wounded, three of them seriously. All were extracted by helicopter and are receiving treatment.’’
The ministry said it was investigating whether the incidents were related.
Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon was due to make a statement to Parliament. US forces, who have faced a string of attacks, have sustained 19 casualties after the war. (Reuters)
Questions over injury to
Syrian guards in attack
WASHINGTON/BAGHDAD, JUNE 24
A NUMBER of Syrian border guards were wounded when American special forces in Iraq attacked a convoy of suspected high-profile members of Saddam Hussein’s toppled government, US officials said on Monday. ‘‘It’s not clear how they were injured, whether they were caught in a crossfire or what. But we are, I believe, still treating three of them,’’ said one official.
The US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the attack occurred last Wednesday in a remote area near Iraq’s western city of Qaim close to the Syrian border and that ‘‘some Syrian guards were injured.’’ US officials did not say whether US forces, acting on intelligence and backed by aircraft, crossed into Syria and were vague on how Syrian guards were involved. The convoy was apparently attempting to escape into Syria, the officials said. Reuters
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