U.S. Death Toll Tops 1,800 In Iraq
Seven Marines Killed In Two Attacks West Of Baghdad
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Play CBS Video Video U.S. Deaths In Iraq Top 1,800 American deaths surpassed 1,800 with the announcement that six Marines from Cleveland were killed northwest of Baghdad. Another Marine was killed 50 miles away. Sharyn Alfonsi and David Martin report.
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Video Troops Need Affordable Homes Many military volunteers and their families face immense pressure when it comes to finding affordable housing. Jim Acosta reports on the growing problem.
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Video Scene Of Attack On U.S. Convoy CBS News RAW: Cameras captured footage of a roadside bomb explosion at the entrance to a tunnel in Baghdad, and the immediate aftermath. The attack targeted a U.S. military convoy.
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A U.S. soldier stands guard as American and Iraqi troops look for evidence around a charred U.S. military Humvee that was the target of a roadside attack, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2005, in Baghdad. (AP)
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An Iraqi police officer pauses while patrolling the site of a massive car bomb attack near the National Theater in Baghdad. Seven people were killed and 25 were injured. (AP)
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Iraqi troops try to diffuse an angry mob of Iraqi army recruit applicants outside the main recruitment center, Monday, Aug. 1, 2005, in the southern city of Basra. (AP)
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Interactive American Heroes Profiles of U.S. soldiers who've died in Iraq, a look at the war's toll and pictures of mourning.
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Interactive Battle For Iraq The government, the insurgency, key players, background and photos.
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Interactive Attacks Map Details on the insurgency and terrorism that has continued to take lives since the fall of Saddam.
One of the Marines died Monday in a suicide car bombing in Hit, 85 miles northwest of Baghdad. The other six were killed Monday in Haditha, 50 miles from Hit. All were attached to the same suburban Cleveland unit.
“Every single one of them is a hero,” said Lt. Col. Kevin Rush of the Headquarters and Service Co. 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines based in Brook Park, Ohio.
At least 25 American service members have been killed in Iraq in the past 10 days — all but two in combat. The Iraqi Defense Ministry said that since the beginning of April, more than 2,700 Iraqis — about half of them civilians — had been killed in insurgency-related incidents.
In other developments:
Fighting has intensified in recent weeks in Haditha, Hit and other dusty towns along the Euphrates River northwest of Baghdad as American forces step up efforts to seal off the approaches to the Syrian border and prevent foreign fighters from entering the country.
The Marines launched a series of operations in the region in May and June in hopes of pacifying the area so that Iraqi military and civilian forces could assume effective control. But the insurgents have proven resilient.
The U.S. command said the six Marines were “engaged by terrorists and killed by small-arms fire” in Haditha, which U.S. and Iraqi officials have identified as a major route for insurgents entering Iraq.
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