More US troops killed in April than in 'major combat' in Iraq
AFP, Washington
More US troops have been killed in action in Iraq in April than during the six weeks of "major combat" after US-led invasion, casualty figures showed Wednesday. When President George W. Bush declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq on May 1, 2003, the US death toll stood at 109. Combat deaths reported by military spokesmen in Baghdad during April climbed to at least 114 on Wednesday. The Pentagon's official tally has not caught up yet because at least 13 deaths of service members reported in April have not been officially categorised as either "killed in action" or "non hostile." Pentagon figures, however, show that at least 124 service members have died so far this month, all but a handful of them in combat. At least 105 have been classified as killed in action and six as unrelated to combat, a defense official said. Since the war began, 721 US service members have lost their lives, 520 of them in combat. Meanwhile, French President Jacques Chirac said yesterday he was doubtful whether the UN Security Council will agree on a resolution confirming the handover of sovereignty from the US authorities to a new Iraqi government. "Europe I am sure will approve the propositions of the UN special envoy (Lakhdar) Brahimi" on the formation of an interim government in Iraq, Chirac said at a news conference.
| 
