US military suffers first casualty of month in Iraq

A non-combat incident in the Karadah district of southeast Baghdad has claimed the life of a US soldier.

It was the first death of the month for US forces in Iraq.

20-year-old Pfc. Lukas C. Hopper of Merced, California died on November 1 due to injuries sustained during a vehicle rollover that occurred on October 30.

The circumstances surrounding the accident are under investigation. Hopper was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, N.C. at the time.

The latest casualty brings the death toll for US soldiers based in Iraq to 136 so far this year.

The US military has lost 4,357 soldiers since the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

A total of 314 US troops lost their lives in 2008. However, 2007 -- when 904 soldiers died -- was the deadliest year for US forces.

Over a million Iraqis have died since the war began in 2003, according to data compiled by London-based Opinion Research Business (ORB) and its research partner in Iraq -- the Independent Institute for Administration and Civil Society Studies (IIACSS).

In addition, a fifth of Iraqi households have lost at least one family member due to the conflict. The United Nations estimates that over four million Iraqis have become displaced people since March 2003. Nearly half of them have fled to neighboring countries, particularly Syria.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=110291§ionid=351020201.