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UK soldiers killed in Iraq attack | UK soldiers killed in Iraq attack |
(20 minutes later) | |
Two UK soldiers have been killed in a bomb attack near Basra in southern Iraq, the Ministry of Defence has said. | |
Their patrol was targeted by a roadside bomb and small arms fire near the town of Ad Dayr at about 1300 local time. | |
Another two soldiers were injured - one seriously - and have been taken to the Shaibah Logistics Base by helicopter for emergency medical treatment. | |
In a separate incident, British boats at a base in Basra were hit by mortar rounds or rockets. | |
The attack started a fire among boats on a waterway inside the perimeter of the Shatt al-Arab Hotel base but no casualties were reported. | The attack started a fire among boats on a waterway inside the perimeter of the Shatt al-Arab Hotel base but no casualties were reported. |
The deaths bring the total number of UK soldiers killed in operations in Iraq since the 2003 conflict to 117. | |
The last British soldier to be killed in Iraq was Matthew Cornish, 29, of the 1st Battalion The Light Infantry, who died after a mortar attack on a Basra base on 1 August. | |
There are about 7,200 UK personnel in British-controlled southern Iraq, most in the Basra area. | There are about 7,200 UK personnel in British-controlled southern Iraq, most in the Basra area. |
The military convoy was targeted about nine miles (15km) north of the city. | |
"It is with great regret that we can confirm that two British soldiers have died as a result of an attack on a British patrol," the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. | |
"One other British soldier was seriously injured, and a further one suffered minor injuries. | |
"Both have been evacuated for emergency medical care and taken by helicopter to a British Field Hospital at Shaibah Logistics Base." |