Two US Soldiers, Pfc. Kristian Menchaca and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, Missing in Iraq. (UPDATE: Soldiers Found Deceased)
The US military has only said the soldiers are missing after an attack on a US military checkpoint near Yousifiya, southwest of the capital Bagdad, Iraq on Friday. As politicians in Washington play games with ridiculous notions of announcing troop withdrawals in Iraq, our soldiers face real life situations every day. Now, brothers in arms look for their missing comrades.
The Defense Department identified the missing men as Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore. It said Spc. David J. Babineau, 25, Springfield, Mass., was killed in the attack. The three were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.
(ABC News)
Missing GIs Likely Taken Captive, Iraqi Official Says
BAGHDAD, June 18 — Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said Sunday that two U.S. soldiers missing after an insurgent attack south of Baghdad appeared to have been taken captive, while U.S. troops searched for their comrades for a second day.
(Washigton Post)
UPDATE: Al Qaeda-Linked Group Claims Kidnapping of GIs
BAGHDAD, Iraq — An Al Qaeda-linked group claimed Monday that it had kidnapped two American soldiers reported missing south of Baghdad, where 8,000 Iraqi and U.S. troops were conducting a massive search.
The umbrella group, called the Mujahedeen Shura Council, said it was holding the two privates — one from Texas and the other from Oregon — as well as four Russian diplomats kidnapped June 3 in Baghdad. It also claimed to have killed a fifth Russian.
(FOX News)
Relatives of Missing Soldier Hope for His Return
His family is now hoping for the 23-year-old Houston soldier’s safe return after learning he was one of two servicemen missing in Iraq after an insurgent attack.
Kay Fristad, an Oregon National Guard spokeswoman, said she had a brief conversation with Tucker’s parents and they said he joined the military “to do something positive for the country.”
Menchaca’s wife, 18-year-old Christina Menchaca, of Big Spring, Texas, said military representatives told her Saturday they were taking “every means possible to find him,” she said.
“We’re basically just watching the news because no one else knows anything about it, no one has heard anything about it,” she said. “We’re just going by what the news has to say.”
Christina Menchaca said she married her husband in September and he deployed in October. The couple met through her brother, who served in the military with Kristian Menchaca.
(FOX News)
Thousands search in Iraq for 2 missing U.S. soldiers; rebels say they have them
The Mujahedeen Shura Council is a grouping of several insurgent forces, including “al-Qaida in Iraq.” Insurgent leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, recently killed in a U.S. air strike, helped create the council in January, apparently to give an Iraqi face to his movement, made up mainly of foreign fighters.
In the posting, the council taunted U.S. forces for failing to find the Americans. (Canada.com)
UPDATE: Iraq Official: U.S. Soldiers’ Bodies Found
The unfortunate but expected outcome has been realized for the two brave US soldiers that were missing in Iraq. The bodies of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston, and Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, OR were found on a street near the town Youssifiyah, close to the scene of the attack.
The bodies of two U.S. soldiers have been found, and a senior Iraqi military official said Tuesday they belong to men who went missing last week after a deadly insurgent attack on a traffic checkpoint.
At a news briefing, U.S. Maj. Gen. William Caldwell declined to identify the men until their families can be notified.
(Breitbart)
Military Confirms Bodies Are of Missing GIs
BAGHDAD, Iraq — The bodies of two U.S. soldiers who were reported missing have been recovered, and an Iraqi official said Tuesday the men were “killed in a barbaric way.”
(FOX News)