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WASHINGTON, Aug. 4, 2006 – Three Iraqi civilians were killed, and nine were injured yesterday when insurgents fired a mortar round at a residential area in Ubaydi, Iraq, U.S. military officials reported. The mortar round landed directly on a home. No coalition personnel were killed or injured in the attack. All nine injured Iraqi civilians were immediately medically evacuated to a nearby U.S. military medical facility. The wounded civilians’ exact condition is unknown, but four were listed as requiring “urgent surgical” medical care, officials said. Marine Corps officials said the attack was intended to strike a nearby coalition forces outpost. Ubaydi is located in western Anbar province, 20 kilometers from the Syrian border. The Marine unit that provides security along the border is the Twentynine Palms, Calif.-based 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment. Also in Iraq, U.S. soldiers manning a security tower in Mahmudiyah were fired upon Aug. 2 by terrorists driving a yellow van. The soldiers returned fire, but the van continued to travel north. Iraqi security forces eventually stopped the van and detained the driver for questioning. Two dead terrorists were discovered in the back of the van with rifles. Both had been killed when the soldiers initially returned fire, officials said. “They fired upon our soldiers, who have every right to defend themselves,” Army Maj. Steve Stover, from Multinational Division Baghdad, said. (Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)
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