U.S. soldier killed near Mosul

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A U.S. soldier died of wounds as a result of an indirect fire attack near Mosul, Iraq Dec. 25, upping to 10 the number killed this month and to 4,217 that killed since the beginning of military operations in March 2003, according to a U.S. army statement on Thursday as received by IraqiNews.com. The statement did not give further details. Six of the 10 U.S. soldiers killed since month died of non-combat causes while another died of disease in a hospital in Germany. Seventeen were killed in November, including 10 of non-combat causes and two of an Iraqi soldier fire in Mosul, while 14 were killed in October, including nine of non-combat causes. In September, 25 were killed, including nine of non-combat causes, seven in a plane crash and one of disease after being transported to a hospital in Washington. Twenty-three were killed in August. July 2008 was the month with the lowest number of U.S. deaths since March 2003 – 13. U.S. fatalities grew with the beginning of this year as 40 were killed in January, 29 in February, 38 in March and 52 in April. November 2004 is still a monthly record high with 137 soldiers killed in violent clashes between the U.S. forces and armed groups in Falluja city in the predominantly Sunni western Iraq province of al-Anbar. AmR (S) 1